Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's: Kokoro
by Cross1412
Summary: Kokoro Fernandez have two goals in mind: find and defeat her mother. In order to do that she must first survive and leave Satellite to achieve that goal. New friends and rivals that would lead her into an adventure that she didn't expect it to happen. As long she remembers Dueling is fun, then she will overcome it. Arc-V may have influence this story's Turbo Dueling.
1. The Enforcers

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have one original character.

Chapter 1: The Enforcers

"BOSS! The Enforcers are here!"

I heard my male subordinate telling me that. I prepare my deck and put it in my Duel Disk that has a red rim. I put on my navy blue vest over my red shirt.

"They show up pretty quickly," I jokingly said as I look myself at a shattered mirror. I'm checking to see if my short black hair with a yellow streak on the left isn't messy. "So what happen?"

"Well…" I can hear the regretful tone of my subordinate. "Most of our toughest men have been defeated by them! Their leader, Kalin, have been asking to see you!"

I turn to my subordinate and asks, "To Duel me? Or to talk to me? I just want little bloodshed as possible in our territory."

"We don't know! But it's not too late for you to escape! We'll find an escape route and—!"

"SILENCE!" I shout at my subordinate to make him not finish his sentence. "I'm not going to run away! Where is this Kalin person?"

My subordinate told me that Kalin and his gang are at the west outside of our territory. I order him to take me to that location and he reluctantly follows. We got outside of the hideout to see the ruined urban city called Satellite.

Satellite was once part of a grand city called New Domino City, but some things happen that made Satellite into an island. The residents work in recycling plants for the garbage that has been "given" to this place and the people who got busted by Sector Security in New Domino City got transfer here. I live in Satellite ever since I was born and my mother took care of me before she left some time ago. Right now, Satellite has become a war zone with gangs Dueling each other for control; kind of like a certain Warring period of our history. Dueling is a term for the popular trading card game called Duel Monsters that were created a long time ago and is still playing to this day. I created a gang as well, but not for fighting. There are people in my territory that can't deal with the gang war, so my gang was created for protecting instead of fighting.

We arrive at the location where Kalin and his Enforcers are waiting. I look around and saw my other male subordinates look defeated. They look at me with sadness in their eyes and quickly hide their face in shame, which I couldn't blame them for.

Then I look at the people who are called the Enforcers, which happen to be four young males. They wear similar types of clothing like brown vests over their shirts and jeans. I look at the boys starting from my left to right; there's a boy who orange hair and is wearing goggles on his forehead, a boy who has black spiky hair with yellow highlights, a boy who has short light blue hair, and a mean-looking boy who has spiky blonde hair and wears a headband. I could make a joke about them looking for a modeling agency, but that would ruin the tense moment here.

One of my subordinates weakly walk up to me and he gets down to the ground in all four of his limbs. He bows his head and said, "I'm sorry, Boss! We try our best to beat them, but they were too strong! Please forgive us! We didn't mean to let this happen!"

"It's okay," I gently reply. "Please raise your head and stand up straight. There's no need for you to feel ashamed of your loss. I want all of you to learn from them, not hate them."

"Thank you for your wise kindness, Boss!" All of my subordinates bow their heads as they say their words in a grateful tone.

I glare at the four boys who are also staring at me. I ask in a demanding tone, "Which one of you is Kalin?"

"That would be me!" The light blue hair boy steps in front of his gang with a smug-look on his face. "I guess that you must be the boss of Team Butterfly. Funny, when I heard from the other gangs that we defeated that this territory's boss is a girl, I never thought it would be true."

I cross my arms together and intensify my glare at him. "You got a problem with that! If you have time to talk, then how's about you use that time to leave this place!"

"I'm sorry, sister!" the orange hair boy spoke with a smirk. "We aren't leaving until we take over this territory!"

"Why?" I gasped. "For what reason for a gang like yourselves want to come over to another gang that didn't expand their territory? We're only on defense not offense!"

"Does that matter?" the blonde guy scoffs in a very arrogant tone. "Your gang is just another set of stepping stones for our goal."

Just as that blonde guy was about to step in, the black hair guy stops him. "Wait, guys! I don't think she wants to fight. After all, none of her gang have gone out to expand their territory. I say we should try to avoid more conflict than we already did."

"It's already too late, Yusei!" Kalin replies. "I mean we already took care of her toughest guys here."

 _He does have a point,_ I thought, _it's already too late to compromise._ "Then can I ask you guys a question? Why is it that a small group like yourselves try to fight against every gang here in Satellite?"

Kalin scratches his nose as if he's trying to be cool to tell me about their reason. He said, "It's because of our goal of becoming the strongest gang that Satellite! We all know that there's no way we can get out of this place, so why not settle to beat all of the gangs here!"

"The reason why you're fighting is just for satisfaction?! Now I really want you guys to leave! This is Team Butterfly's territory and what is our motto, boys?"

"Our motto is to protect not to fight!" My subordinates all shout in unison.

"And why is it that we choose to protect this place?"

"Because fighting only brings despair! And we must use our powers for good and not for ourselves!"

"And that is Team Butterfly!" I smirk as I stomp the ground hard. "Kalin, I challenge you to a Duel! Whoever wins will take this territory!" I activate my Duel Disk as the atmosphere around me becomes tense.

Kalin smirks as he too activates his Duel Disk that has his deck. "Fine by me. I'm going to show you the power of the Enforcers!"

Butterfly's Leader's Life Points: 4000

Kalin's Life Points: 4000

We both draw five cards from our decks and Kalin allows me to go first. I draw a card and places it into my hand. Then I said, "I summon Elemental Hero Clayman in defense mode!" A humanoid with a huge build made of stone appears in front of me as he crosses his arms like he's defending me.

Elemental Hero Clayman: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 800 DEF: 2000

My subordinates begin to cheer to see Clayman as one of them shouted, "Go for it, Clayman! Protect the Boss!"

 _Oh brother…_ "I end my turn by placing two cards facedown!" Two mysterious cards appear behind Clayman.

Kalin draws a card. "First I activate the spell card, Into the Void! This spell only activates if I have three or more cards in my hand. As you can see, I still have five cards, which means I can get to draw one card. However, there's a catch. I have discard all of the cards in my hand as soon as I end my turn."

"Why did you play such a risky card?" I ask out of concern.

Kalin didn't answer my question as he continues his turn. "Next I summon Infernity Beast in attack mode!" A black wolf-like monster with a mask-like face appears in front of Kalin.

Infernity Beast: Level 3, Dark

ATK: 1600 DEF: 1200

"And I also end my turn by placing two cards facedown!" Two cards appear behind the Infernity Beast. Also, since Kalin ends his turn, he has send the remaining cards in his hand to the graveyard.

 _I can't believe he use such a risky card,_ I thought as I draw a card. "First I switch Clayman into attack mode and I summon Elemental Hero Lady Heat!" An orange hair lady in red and white spandex appears next to Clayman as her hands spew out fire.

Elemental Hero Lady Heat: Level 4, Fire

ATK: 1300 DEF: 1000

"Next I activate the Field Spell, Skyscraper!" As soon as I place a card to the Field Spell Zone, the whole area began to change from a ruined city to a much cleaner one. It's like I'm in a different Satellite than before.

My team and I aren't surprise to see this Field Spell, but it looks like the Enforcers are. The orange hair boy exclaims, "This is amazing!"

"I agree," the black hair boy called Yusei nods his head. "I wonder if this is what New Domino City is like."

"If you guys are done being a bunch of hicks, I'm going to attack! Clayman attacks your Infernity Beast!"

"Hold on!" The orange hair boy begins to speak. "That monster is clearly weaker than Kalin's monster! Why would you attack?"

I explain, "I activate Skyscraper's ability! If a weaker Elemental Hero monster attacks a monster that is clearly stronger, then that Elemental Hero gains 1000 attack points during the remainder of battle!"

Elemental Hero Clayman: ATK: 800 + 1000 = 1800

They've become shock to see the attack boost as Clayman punches Infernity Beast at its lower jaw that sends it flying. After a few seconds of flying, the Infernity Beast falls down to the ground and disappears.

Kalin's Life Points: 4000 – 200 = 3800

Elemental Hero Clayman: ATK: 1800 – 1000 = 800

"Now you're wide-open for a direct attack! Go, Lady Heat!"

Lady Heat forms the fire that she's spewing into a ball and she throws it at Kalin like a baseball. However, Kalin activates one of his facedown cards.

"You trigger my trap, Dimensional Prison! This trap negates your Lady Heat's attack and banish her from the field!"

A dimensional hole appears in front of Kalin and absorbs Lady Heat's fireball. The hole starts acting like a vacuum as it sucks in Lady Heat like its eating her. The hole disappears as soon as it's done eating my fiery heroine. I end my turn after that.

"That's pretty impressive," I said as a comment. And it's true because if he didn't get rid of Lady Heat after her attack, her special ability would kick in. Her ability allows her to deal 200 points of direct damage to my opponent for every Elemental Hero on my side of the field.

Kalin scratches his nose with a smug look on his face. "Well, what can I say… that's all skill, just like what I'm going to do right now! Draw!" He draws a card from his deck and he smiles happily when he looks at it. "I special summon Infernity Archfiend in attack mode!" Some sort of demonic warlock appears in front Kalin and he looks at me with an awful grin on his face.

Infernity Archfiend: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 1800 DEF: 1200

"You see; his special ability works when I have no cards in my hand. Since I don't have any cards right now, I can special summon him. Also, when I did summon him like that, I can add one Infernity monster from my deck and into my hand!" He looks through his deck for a bit and pulls out a card before he shuffles his deck and puts it back into his Duel Disk. "I summon Infernity Guardian in attack mode!" A V-shape arc that has a skull producing fire at its center appears floating next to the demonic warlock.

Infernity Guardian: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 1200 DEF: 1700

"Since your Field Spell only works when your Elemental Hero attacks, that means it can't get a power boost when I attack! Infernity Guardian attacks your Clayman!"

I see that the Infernity Guardian's mouth is forming a fireball attack, but I retaliate by activating one of my facedown cards. "I activate the trap card, Negate Attack! This trap negates your attack and quickly ends your battle phase!"

Infernity Guardian shoots its fireball at Clayman, but a vortex appears and sucks in the attack. The vortex disappears, only to make Kalin to end his turn.

I draw a card. "I summon Elemental Hero Stratos in attack mode!" A blue hero that has propellers as wings fly above my Field Spell and landed right next to Clayman. His design reminds me of a humanoid airplane.

Elemental Hero Stratos: Level 4, Wind

ATK: 1800 DEF: 300

"Elemental Hero Stratos's special ability activates! When he's summoned, I can use one of his two abilities! I chose the ability to destroy your facedown card for a number of Elemental Heroes beside Stratos! Since Clayman is still here, I destroy only your only facedown card!"

This makes the Enforcers to gasp in shock as Stratos uses his propellers to create a tornado. That tornado destroys Kalin's facedown card.

Next I order Clayman to attack Infernity Archfiend. This sort of tactic can be considered reckless, though that's because Clayman gets a 1000 power boost in his attack strength, which made his attack points equal to the target. Infernity Archfiend uses his claws to fight back, but it still got hit by Clayman's punch. Both of them die in that battle and no one loses any life points.

"Since you left your Infernity Guardian in its attack position, I allow Stratos to attack it!" Stratos uses a strong gust of wind that strikes the monster's body; however, it didn't die.

Kalin's Life Points: 3800 – 600 = 3200

Kalin explains, "Infernity Guardian can't be destroyed in battle or card effect as long as I have no cards in my hand. So much for you to get rid of him."

I end my turn by placing a facedown card. That card appears behind Stratos.

As soon as Kalin draws his card, the blonde guy makes a comment. He said, "I just realize that girl hasn't lost any life points. I guess Kalin is losing his touch."

Kalin, who heard that, retorts, "Shut up, Jack! I'm well-aware of that! She just got some good defense cards!"

Then one of my subordinates is acting all smug as he replies, "That is why Boss is so strong! Hell, we manage to deal some damage to her, but she still beat us! Don't you agree, everyone?" All of my subordinates have roar in response.

I shook my head in disbelief. "It can't be help. It's just that my drawing skills are just too good."

Kalin chuckles as he said, "That doesn't matter! At first I thought that, since you're a girl, you would just be some poster girl that is acting like a gang leader. However, after seeing how you Duel, I can tell that you're a tough opponent."

"I thank you for the compliment." I smirk.

Kalin continues his turn "I sacrifice my Infernity Guardian to summon Infernity Destroyer!" Infernity Guardian gets replace by some red, orc-like demon warrior and he looks extremely menacing.

Infernity Destroyer: Level 6, Dark

ATK: 2300 DEF: 1000

"Now Infernity Destroyer will destroy your Elemental Hero!"

His Infernity Destroyer walks up to Stratos and punches him. The punch is strong enough to kill him and took down some of my life points.

Butterfly's Leader's Life Points: 4000 – 500 = 3500

"Finally Kalin has decrease her life points," the blonde guy named Jack sarcastically spoke, "I thought he was just holding back because he is Dueling a girl."

"Jack…" the orange hair guy looks at his friend. "At least try to support him, not criticizing him!"

Kalin ignores his friends' argument as he said, "I activate Infernity Destroyer's special ability! When he destroys a monster in battle, you lose 1600 of your life points!"

My subordinates become surprise when they heard that, even I'm surprise as well. Infernity Destroyer uses his shadow to attack me and it did as my life points begin to dwindle.

Butterfly's Leader's Life Points: 3500 – 1600 = 1900

Everyone couldn't believe that I already lost half of my life points within that one battle. Kalin immediately ends his turn since he has no cards in his hand.

I draw a card and that card happens to be the spell card, Pot of Greed. This spell allows me to draw two more cards from my deck. "I summon Elemental Hero Blazeman in attack mode!" A red and black hero comes in from the sky like a meteor. His hair is like actual fire and he has a strange contraption on his back that has six candles.

Elemental Hero Blazeman: Level 4, Fire

ATK: 1200 DEF: 1800

"That's a weak monster compare to Infernity Destroyer," the orange hair boy commented.

However, Yusei interjects, "I wouldn't be too sure, Crow. She's pretty confident when she summons that. So it must be powerful or something."

I giggled when I heard that. "You could say that. I activate Blazeman's ability! During my main phase, I can discard any Elemental Hero card from my deck to the graveyard. And when that happens, Blazeman's attribute, attack points, and defense points become the same as that discard Elemental Hero until the end of the turn."

"WHAT?!" Kalin and the orange hair guy named Crow both gasp in surprise.

"The Elemental Hero that I send to the graveyard is Elemental Hero Bladedge! Now Blazeman gains Bladedge's power!"

Elemental Hero Blazeman: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 2600 DEF: 1800

"But wait there's more! Next I activate the spell card, Miracle Fusion! This spell allows me to do a Fusion Summon by using the Elemental Heroes in my graveyard by removing them from play! I remove from play Elemental Hero Clayman and Stratos so they fuse together to become Elemental Hero Gaia!"

The two monsters, Clayman and Stratos, fly up into the air as a vortex opens up. They went inside the vortex and they spin around until a bright flash of light stops the vortex. Coming out of it is a gigantic black golem that looks an awful like a giant robot, but a bit smaller.

Elemental Hero Gaia: Level 6, Earth

ATK: 2200 DEF: 2600

"When Gaia is summoned, he cuts down your Infernity Destroyer's attack points down to half and that half goes to Gaia!"

Infernity Destroyer: ATK: 2300/2 = 1150

Elemental Hero Gaia: ATK: 2200 + 1150 = 3350

"No way!" Kalin is shock to see this kind of dilemma.

"It's your lost, Kalin~!" I cutely said.

I order Gaia to attack Infernity Destroyer. Gaia slams his fist to the ground and a bunch of debris flies and hits Kalin's monster. The weight of the debris kills Infernity Destroyer.

Kalin's Life Points: 3200 – 2200 = 1000

"Blazeman~! Please finish this Duel for me~!"

Blazeman jumps up in the air and does a diving kick towards Kalin. My Elemental Hero becomes a shooting star at that kind of speed. His kick hits Kalin, which causes an explosion. It's not a literal one, so Kalin didn't die from that. But he does lose the Duel.

Kalin's Life Points: 1000 – 2600 = 0

When the Duel is over, the holograms disappear and Kalin falls down to the ground on his butt. The Enforcers are shock to see the outcome, while my subordinates just cheer for our victory. I walk up to Kalin and offer him a helping hand, which he accepts as I pulled him up from the ground.

"That was a great Duel," he said with a smile on his face. "You're either pretty strong or just very lucky. It doesn't matter since it's your victory."

Then Jack steps in. "Step aside, Kalin. It's my turn. I'll be the one who's getting this territory!"

"No, Jack!" Kalin reprimands him. "She won this Duel fair and square and we promise her that we leave her territory alone!"

"Have you forgotten what our goal is as the Enforcers?! Our goal is to become the strongest gang in Satellite and that is why we've been going around conquering territories!"

Yusei spoke, "She must have a reason why this place needs their protection. Can you tell us why you're protecting this place?"

Then suddenly we heard someone running to this area. We all turn around to see a black hair, little girl in a blue dress coming towards us. I recognize this girl as Lily ever since we save her from a gang that was infiltrating in our territory. I remember that we promise her that we take her back home once we find safe pathway to take. Why is she coming here? I thought I told her that she should stay in the hideout when we heard a gang coming to our territory.

Lily stops in front of me as she pants very heavily since she comes here via running. I ask, "Lily, what are you doing here?"

As soon as she stops panting, she answers, "I heard that you're going to Duel against the Enforcers and I just have to come."

"I'm sorry, but the Duel is already over."

"WHAT?! It's over! No way… After all that running…"

I couldn't help but chuckle at her misfortune. I just find it funny for some reason. Then suddenly Crow grabs me by the collar, which shocks everyone. I look at his face and I can tell that he's mad, but for what reason.

"You…!" he growls. "So you're the one who kidnap Lily!"

"HUH?!" I exclaimed. "What do you mean by kidnap?!" I already guess that he must have been Lily's acquaintance from his tone.

"Don't play dumb! I heard from Martha that Lily has been missing for over two weeks! Now that I saw Lily here, that must mean you kidnap her!"

"You're wrong, Crow!" Lily puffs her cheeks and kicks Crow in the shins, which made him to let go of me as he hops in one leg.

"Ow!" he groans. "Why you kick me, Lily?"

"Butterfly Lady didn't kidnap me, she and her friends save me!"

Lily and I explain to them what happen. During one of her rounds of finding some flowers for Martha, she got ambush by some rival gang. My escorts and I happen to be in the area and save her and took her into our territory that have been housing a bunch of kids who are separated from their loved ones. Just having kids in our territory becomes the reason why we protect this place instead of expanding it.

After hearing our explanation, Crow immediately apologizes. "I'm sorry," he said, "and thank you for protecting her for all this time."

I giggle with a reply, "That's okay. I understand how you feel if I'm in your situation." I turn to Lily and said, "Since your friends are here, that means you can go back home now."

Lily makes a sad face, which is weird since this should be the part where she's happy to go back home. "if I leave this place, does that mean that I won't be able to see you guys again?" she asks in a very sad tone.

I didn't expect that from a little girl like her. I nod my head in response. "Yeah, you won't be able to see us again. I mean we're in a hellish warring city after all! You have to go back home!"

"No way!" Lily hugs my lower waist as she begins sobbing. "I don't want to go back! We've become friends and I won't be able to see you again! It's not fair!"

I petted the little girl on the head and I too become sad. "I understand how you feel, even I think it's not fair. But that's life for you. There are times that we have to part our ways." Thanks to my choice of dialogue, Lily sobs even more. It felt so heartbreaking for me if she continues like this.

Then Yusei offers a suggestion. "Hey, Kalin. Why not we form an alliance so that Lily can visit her whenever she wants? We did take out some of the gang from Martha's place to here, so the path should be safe."

 _I like that suggestion._ "I agree with that offer. So how about it, Kalin?"

Kalin is hesitant to respond. "I don't know… Our goal is to become the strongest gang in all of Satellite and since I couldn't beat you, that would be a hindrance."

Then I make him an offer. "Kalin, if we form an alliance right now, this territory can be your check point area for you and your friends to rest. Also that the fact that you didn't beat me would act some kind of incentive for you to go out there and continue to get stronger so you can beat me! Think about it! You can't really be called the 'Strongest' until you beat someone who is stronger than you! I could act as your goal in your journey!"

Kalin seems to like my offer. "Fine, we'll form an alliance." We both shake hands in agreement as Lily lets go of me with a happy smile on her face. "Lets introduce ourselves. I'm Kalin Kessler, the leader of the Enforcers."

"I'm Crow Hogan, nice to meet you!"

"I'm Jack Atlas."

"And I'm Yusei Fudo. What's your name?"

I answer, "My name is Kokoro, Kokoro Fernandez. I hope that we get along greatly!"

My gang and I watch the Enforcers taking Lily back home. It's sad for them to see Lily off since they too become friends with her. However, they remember that she will come visit again someday. So when we saw them gone from our sights, I order my subordinates to go back to their stations and continue to protect our territory. As for me, I went back to the hideout to continue a very special project that I'm working on.


	2. Salvaging

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have original characters.

Chapter 2: Salvaging

"Kokoro…" I heard a female voice calling my name, but I ignore her. "Kokoro… Kokoro… WAKE UP ALREADY, YOU LAZY GIRL!"  
That yell in my ears woke me up. I jerk my upper body off my bed as I look at the person who yells. That person is Silent Magician; she's a little girl in white-blue sorceress outfit and she has a cute staff in her hands. But she's not a real person, she's a Duel Monster Spirit. Duel Monster Spirits are ghosts that come from the card game and apparently, they also have another world parallel to Earth. They sometime come out to meet their human partner if that partner can see them and such. Currently I'm not the first to have Silent Magician as a partner as she often compares me to my predecessors, including my mom, though she spoke more about my great-great-grandmother who was her first partner.

"You don't need to yell," I responded in a solemn tone as I got up from my bed.

My hideout has a shower area that I use to take a bath. I remove my clothes and pull the shower curtains to cover my naked body so I can take a bath. During that time, Silent Magician and I started a conversation.

"How's your little project going?" Silent Magician asks as if she's trying to provoke, which works.

"It's not 'little'!" I snap. "Once I find the right parts, my Duel Runner can help me get out of this place and into New Domino City!"

I can hear her sighing. "Chasing after your mother is not a good thing, you know. But when you finish making your Duel Runner, what can you say to the people who have supported you?"

"You mean my subordinates…?" I did think about them for a while. Even though I don't know their names, I'm always grateful for their work. There's also the children who are staying in this place. Thinking about them has sadden me.

"You're going to make a lot of people sad," Silent Magician comments. "Speaking about people, what about your new friends, the Enforcers? Don't you care about them as well?"

"It has been only a couple of days since we've become friends. Now that I think about it… I've never seen them since then. They're probably busy taking over another territory somewhere."

Then we heard a ringing sound that is coming from my computer. I turn off the shower, put on a towel to cover my body, and walk up to it. It turns out to be a friend is calling me via video phone. The name of the person who is calling me in the caller id is Misty Tredwell, a starting fashion model from New Domino City. I met her on this video chat during my Internet testing of my place and we've become good friends after we chat about our lives and such. We even made plans about living together as soon as I got out of Satellite.

I answer the video call that stops the ringing sound. A small window appears in my screen that shows a young woman who has black hair and a face that makes her look cool. She also has a gem on her forehead that is probably tied somewhere on her head.

Misty smiles as she said, "Morning, Kokoro. I see that you've just gotten out of the shower."

"Hey, Misty," I greeted back with a smile. "You wouldn't believe what Silent Magician has told me." By the way, Misty is the only person who knows about Silent Magician's existence even though she can't see spirits.

I explain to her about the conversation as I change into my clothes. I put on my red shirt, navy blue vest, brown shorts, black knee-high socks, and brown boots. After I'm done telling her about the conversation, all I could hear her giggling in response.

"What's so funny, Misty?" I ask with an eyebrow raised. "We're talking about me leaving this place! It's sad for me to break some hearts if I did that!"

"Then why not just tell them and hear their feelings." That idea didn't occur to me until Misty suggests it. "How will they take the news is up to them."

Her last words made me worried a little. I decided to change the subject by asking, "Why are you calling?"

"I'm calling to tell you that I found a nice apartment for you and me to be living in as soon as you leave Satellite. I'm thinking of buying it, what do you think?"

I shook my head. "Not now. I'm still busy to find the date when the city dumps its trash in this place. That and I'm busy searching for the parts for my Duel Runner. So, it's going to be a while." I bring out a tin cup of water from my sink and I took a sip from it before I continue talking. "You know, I'm glad that you're the first person from New Domino City to think of me as a friend."

Misty smiles when she heard me say that. "Me too. I'm a bit surprise that you didn't show any resentment towards me when I told you that. I thought the discord between the people runs deep that it couldn't be repair."

That is true. The people living in Satellite are in extreme poverty and the only way to survive this place is to work or steal. There's also Sector Security causing problems or just straight up ignores the people, but they are continuing their jobs by locking up innocent people because of reasons. It's because of these terrible living conditions that made the residents here to hate the people in New Domino City. In fact, most of the officers in Sector Security here are from New Domino City and they keep giving the people a bad attitude, including name calling. It's surprising to anyone who knows about this to see that I, a resident from Satellite, has befriended someone from New Domino City via video phone.

"I can't blame everyone in New Domino City about my living conditions," I said a mature tone. "It's easy to blame someone, but when you think about certain factors, who can you truly blame. The world is never fair to begin with."

Then Misty notices the time as she told me that she must end the call since she needs to get to work. We say our goodbyes and hung up the video phone. Just as I'm about to look for some information inside the World Wide Web, someone came bursting through the door. That person is one of my subordinates who came in here running and I notice that Silent Magician is nowhere to be seen.

I ask, "What's wrong?"

He pants heavily for a while until he says, "We found a junkyard that we believe have the parts that you need for your Duel Runner!"

By the way, all my subordinates know the Duel Runner that I'm working on. But they don't know the reason I'm building it. They assume it's for a countermeasure against Sector Security just in case they want to attack this place.

"So, where is it?"

"They're in the junkyard of Sector D!"

 _Sector D…_ I thought to myself. "Isn't that the Magician's Four's territory? I know that they're a small group consisting of four people, but they're tough people."

"You don't need to worry about them! Apparently, the Enforcers are planning to attack them within thirty minutes from now! We have to hurry!"

I stop him before he starts running ahead. "I want you and the others to stay here and protect the place." My subordinate refuses since he, just like the others, don't want me to go alone. "But it'll be suspicious if you guys come with me. The lesser the people, the better for infiltration. I promise I will come back unscathed, so please."

When I made a sad face, my subordinate has no choice but to accept my idea. He went out of the hideout to tell the others about what we discuss. I grab my list and backpack and I leave after him.

* * *

I arrive at Sector D, which is another part of a poorly urbanized neighborhood that has an abandoned factory. Of course, getting here wasn't easy because I have sneak pass a lot of people. I sneakily walk around the place, hoping to find the junkyard. To be fair, I would have brought the subordinate who have gotten the information, but I don't want to risk being caught by the Magician's Four, a gang governing this territory. I was hoping to hear some battles to be going on since the Enforcers are attacking them, but the place is quiet. In fact, it's too quiet.

The quiet atmosphere is starting to get to me. I've become nervous as the tension builds up. I can feel my head sweating and my hands shaking with anticipation of being caught. I'm starting to feel afraid of going around any corners in the neighborhood, but with no sight of any people around, I take my chances.

Just as I am about to turn a corner, I heard someone yelling, "GET HIM! DON'T LET HIM ESCAPE!"

I quickly hide back into the corner and I took a slight peek to see Crow being chase by the Magician's Four. I can tell they're the Magician's Four because they wear strange clothing that belongs to a circus. Though seeing them chasing after Crow worries me, but I can tell that he's going to be fine.

My mind is too focus on finding that junkyard. I eventually found it in a large square in the middle of some buildings, but it looks like I'm not the only one who does. I saw a small girl who has brownish, long bushy hair; she wears a yellow knit cap, a blue long coat, an orange dress, and brown shoes. She also has a Criminal Mark, which means that she has been branded as a criminal by Sector Security.

The girl notices me and she said, "Hello! I'm not stealing or anything!" She seems to be wary of me, which is one to be expected from someone who enters someone else's territory.

I reassure her by saying, "Don't worry about it. I too am an outsider like yourself."

"Huh? How come you know that I'm an outsider?"

"Your reactions," I bluntly answer as I point at her. "If I were you, I should learn how to keep on a poker face."

She scratches her head bashfully. "I'm sorry for my behavior! My name is Rally Dawson!"

"Nice to meet you, Rally!" I smile at her. "I'm Kokoro Fernandez. So, what's a cute girl like you doing out here?"

"Well—!" She stops talking as if she realizes something that I have just said. "Wait… do you just call me a girl?" I nod my head in response and that got her mad as she puffs out her cheeks. "I'm not a girl! I'm a boy!"

Those last words froze me for a second as if my brain just shuts down. When my brain starts working again, the words that came out of my mouth is "You're a boy?!"

Rally nods his head. I guess you can't judge a book by its cover, especially someone's appearance. What's more shocking to notice that he is cuter than me, which I consider it to be a defeat for me.

Then Rally explains to me why is he here. Apparently, he is a friend of Yusei's and he wants to find some parts of a Duel Runner for him. It seems that Yusei is also working on a Duel Runner like me, which made me want to talk to him about it. Rally figures that the parts Yusei is looking for may be here and he times it right when the Enforcers made their move to distract the Magician's Four. Of course, he didn't tell the Enforcers about his plan and even if he did, they wouldn't allow Rally to do it since he will probably be a hindrance to them.

"Well, do you want me to help you out?" I ask in a big sister-like tone.

"Really?!" Rally gasps. When I nod my head, he becomes extremely happy and his smile is too cute.

We spend about an hour of searching through the junkyard to find the parts. All we keep finding were useless scrap metal and other junks. We manage to find the parts we need underneath the piles of junks; however, there's one part that Rally is still searching. That last part is a Duel Runner CPU, which is extremely rare in Satellite. I found my CPU by sheer luck after I beat up a guy who is trying to sell me Duel Runner parts that don't work. I told Rally to give up since we don't have enough time to stay here.

"But we can't give up now!" Rally retorts. "I have to hurry and find it!"

I grab hold of Rally's hands and look him at the eye and said, "I understand that you're doing this for Yusei, but wouldn't that worry him if you're not around when he got back. Please think about your friends' feelings before doing something so reckless."

It seems like my words got to him as he nods his head in agreement. Just as we're about to leave, we heard footsteps of someone coming to this direction. Judging from the sound, I believe it's someone running. It's the leader of the Magician's Four and he looks like the Duel Monster called the Dark Eradicator Warlock; he's a red version of the Dark Magician with a purple cape.

The Dark Eradicator guy notices us and shouts, "WHO THE HELL ARE YOU GUYS? ALSO, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE? ARE YOU GUYS WITH THE ENFORCERS?"

I answer his questions with another question as I ask, "Why are you running? Are you running away from Kalin and the others?"

He steps back a little when he heard Kalin's name. "So, you guys are with the Enforcers! Well, it's thanks to your friends that my gang got busted! I guess they won't mind if I use you two as hostages!"

I pull out my Duel Disk and rope out of my backpack. I toss my rope at him as the end of the rope wraps around his arm where his Duel Disk is. When he notices the rope on his arm, he knew it was too late since this means that he won't run away from me.

"Who are you?" he asks in a panic tone.

"You can call me the leader of Team Butterfly!" I answer in proud tone.

Both he and Rally are shock to hear what I just said. "Y-you're the leader of Team Butterfly?" The Dark Eradicator guy points at me. "The same leader who makes an alliance with the Enforcers?"

"The very same!" I have a devilish smile on my face when I say that. "I don't like being used as a hostage, so you're going to pay! It's time to Duel!" We activate our Duel Disks and draw five cards from decks.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000

The Dark Eradicator Guy's Life Points: 4000

I let the Dark Eradicator guy to start the Duel off as he draws a card from his deck. "I summon Rapid-Fire Magician in attack mode!" A male mage in a black outfit appears in front of him. This mage wields two staves in both of his hands and he glares at me as if he's ready to attack me.

Rapid-Fire Magician: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 1600 DEF: 1200

He ends his turn by placing a card facedown. The card appears behind his magician.

Then Kalin and the others show up with Crow screaming, "DON'T RUN AWAY! GET BACK HERE!" When they arrive to see my Duel against the leader of Magician's Four, they are shock to see me and Rally. I think they're confuse to see me Dueling since I'm the gang leader who chose not to attack anyone.

Kalin asks, "Kokoro?! What are you doing here?"

Then Yusei follows up by asking, "Rally, why are you here?"

Rally couldn't answer Yusei's question. I guess he is afraid to get scolded when he told them his reason. I wonder if that's because of his Criminal Mark, but I don't want to pry information about their lives.

I point at them and I exclaim, "Just shut up and watch my Duel, boys! It's my turn! Draw!" I draw a card from my deck. "I activate the Field Spell, Skyscraper!" The whole area becomes an urbanized city in night and active lights around. "Next I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart in attack mode!" A man who looks he's from the wilds with a big sword strap onto his back appears in front of me.

Elemental Hero Wildheart: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 1500 DEF: 1600

"Wildheart attacks your Rapid-Fire Magician! Also, thanks to Skyscraper, Wildheart gains 1000 attack points because he's weaker than your monster!"

Elemental Hero Wildheart: ATK: 1500 + 1000 = 2500

As soon as Wildheart charges with his sword, the leader of the Magician's Four activates his facedown card. "You activated my trap card, Sakuretsu Armor! This trap negates your Wildheart's attack and destroys him!"

Rapid-Fire Magician has encased in the most deadly-looking armor ever. It looks tough for my Wildheart's sword to cut through. However, it's not tough as Wildheart easily cuts through the armor with ease and kills Rapid-Fire Magician. Seeing this happen has made the owner of that monster surprise as his jaw just drops.

The Dark Eradicator Guy's Life Points: 4000 – 900 = 3100

Elemental Hero Wildheart: ATK: 2500 – 1000 = 1500

"N-no way!" he stutters. "How can that be? My trap card should have protected my monster! It must be a trick! It has to be!"

"You're wrong~!" I shook my head when I say that in a teasing tone. "Wildheart has this special ability that makes him immune by the effects of trap cards. It's common knowledge for everyone to know about Wildheart's ability, yet you activate that trap way too early. If it were me, I would've save it for a more powerful monster."

My words seem to get to him. I can see him seething with rage. This make me wonder how the Magician's Four got control of this territory.

"I end my turn by placing two cards facedown," I said as two cards appear behind Wildheart.

The leader of the Magician's Four draws a card from his deck. "I summon Skilled Dark Magician in attack mode!" A dark blue mage that has two orbs on his shoulders appears. The mage wields a staff that has the same orb like the ones on his shoulders.

Skilled Dark Magician: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 1900 DEF: 1700

He orders his Skilled Dark Magician to attack Wildheart. The mage fires a bolt of dark magic from his staff at the bolt hits Wildheart's chest. The power of that magic has killed my Elemental Hero.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000 – 400 = 3600

However, I reveal one of my facedown cards. "I activate the trap card, Hero Signal!" A huge light beam with an H in the center hits the sky as if we're watching a superhero movie. "If one of my monsters gets destroyed in battle, this trap card allows me to special summon an Elemental Hero from my deck if that Hero is level 4 or below. I pick Elemental Hero Ocean in attack mode!" A blue warrior who looks like he came from Atlantis appears in front of me as soon as the light beam disappears.

Elemental Hero Ocean: Level 4, Water

ATK: 1500 DEF: 1200

He ends his turn by placing one card facedown. That card appears behind his sorcerer.

I notice that Kalin and the others are talking as I listen in on the peanut gallery. Crow said, "Kokoro is doing good, don't you think?"

Jack shook his head. "It's not that. It's just her opponent is weak! I'm glad that I didn't deal with this small fry."

"By the way, Rally," Kalin spoke that got Rally's attention. "What are you doing here? And with Kokoro? Is there some 'secret meeting' going on behind our backs?"

Rally's face turns red when he heard Kalin suggesting that. "What are you talking about?! Kokoro and I just met! There's nothing going on between us!"

"Right… keep telling us that. But it finally happens, you have become a man!" Kalin is smiling. It seems like he's enjoying teasing Rally.

Yusei look at his friend and said, "Kalin, please stop teasing him. Let's focus on this Duel and we'll talk about this afterwards."

I notice that the leader of the Magician's Four is seething with rage again. I guess he couldn't take the atmosphere that has been going on in the peanut gallery.

"My turn! Draw!" I draw a card from my deck. Then during the standby phase, Ocean's ability activates. I said, "I can target one Hero monster on the field or graveyard and send it back into my hand. The card I pick is Elemental Hero Wildheart!" Next I use the card that I drew, which was the spell card, Pot of Greed. This spell allows me to draw two cards.

But it's thanks to my spell card, Skilled Dark Magician's ability activates. Whenever I use a spell card, that magician gains a Spell Counter. He can only hold up to three and when that happens, Skilled Dark Magician would be problematic.

Skilled Dark Magician: Counter – 1

"I summon Elemental Hero Wildheart in attack mode!" Wildheart appears next to Ocean as the two heroes look at each other with a smile. "Wildheart attacks your Skilled Dark Magician! And thanks to the power of Skyscraper, Wildheart gains 1000 attack points!"

Elemental Hero Wildheart: ATK: 1500 + 1000 = 2500

Wildheart swings his sword at the Skilled Dark Magician. But the Dark Eradicator guy activates his facedown trap card, Mirror Force. It's a trap that negates any attack and destroys all the opponent's attacking position monsters. As a thin shield-like mirror appears to protect the magician, my Elemental Hero cuts through the shield and kills the magician. However, the shards from that shield flies towards Ocean and kills him. I end my turn without placing anything down.

The Dark Eradicator Guy's Life Points: 3100 – 600 = 2500

Elemental Hero Wildheart: ATK: 2500 – 1000 = 1500

The Dark Eradicator guy draws his card. When he looks at his card, he laughs maniacally. "Now I got the card I need to defeat you! I pay half of my life points to activate the spell card, Dark Magic Curtain! This card allows me to summon the Dark Magician from my deck! And I'll summon him in attack mode!"

The Dark Eradicator Guy's Life Points: 2500/2 = 1250

A skeleton monster with a long black cape appears in the field. Then coming out of that cape is a silver hair man wearing a red magician's outfit and he carries a green staff. The skeleton disappears as the magician landed on the ground as he looks at me all sinisterly-like.

Dark Magician (Red Version): Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2500 DEF: 2100

"Next I activate the spell card, Thousand Knives! If there's a Dark Magician on my side of the field, I can destroy your Wildheart without going into battle!"

The Dark Magician summons a thousand of knives. With a single wag of his index finger, the knives fly towards Wildheart and kills him in a barrage.

The owner of the Dark Magician smirks as if he got me beat. "Go now, Dark Magician! Use your Dark Magic Attack on her!" The Dark Magician fires a bolt of dark magic at me and I can hear the gasps coming from my friends.

"I activate the trap card, A Hero Emerges! You must pick a card in my hand and if that card happens to be a monster, then I can summon it! Are you feeling lucky?"

"The second card to your left is the one I pick."

I couldn't help but smirk when he picks that card. "The card you pick is a monster! I summon Elemental Hero Burstinatrix in defense mode!" A lady in red spandex and long black hair appears in front of me and she crosses her arms.

Elemental Hero Burstinatrix: Level 3, Fire

ATK: 1200 DEF: 800

Burstinatrix protects me from the Dark Magician's attack. The bolt hits her and she explodes like fireworks. Since she's in her defense position, I won't be receiving any damage from this battle. This made the Dark Eradicator guy angry as he ends his turn since he's confident that I don't have any strong monsters in my deck.

I draw a card from my deck. "I activate the spell card, Silent Doom, to bring back Burstinatrix from the grave!" Burstinatrix appears again in her defense position. "Next I summon Elemental Hero Avian to join in the fray!" A male hero who looks a green birdman without a beak appears next to Burstinatrix.

Elemental Hero Avian: Level 3, Wind

ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000

"Lastly, I use the spell card, Polymerization! This spell allows me to fuse together both Avian and Burstinatrix to become the Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"

A vortex appears in the sky as my two heroes jump inside in. Then a bright light happens that made the vortex to disappear. But coming out of that light is a green hero that has a single white wing, a dragon's tail, and a dragon's head for an arm standing on top of the skyscraper. It looks so cool when he's standing there, especially with the holographic full moon behind him.

Elemental Hero Flame Wingman: Level 6, Wind

ATK: 2100 DEF: 1200

"Flame Wingman attacks your Dark Magician! And thanks to Skyscraper, he gains a 1000 power boost to his attack points!"

Elemental Hero Flame Wingman: ATK: 2100 + 1000 = 3100

"Go! Skydive Scorcher!"

The Flame Wingman did a flying, diving kick at the Dark Magician. The Dark Magician tries to use his magic to block the attack, however, that kick passes through his magical shield and hits his chest. An explosion occurs and the Dark Magician is dead.

The Dark Eradicator Guy's Life Points: 1250 – 600 = 650

The Magician's Four's leader grits his teeth. "You may have defeated my Dark Magician, but that doesn't mean you win this Duel!"

"I did win this Duel," I said with a smirk, which confuses my opponent. "I activate Flame Wingman's ability! When he destroys your Dark Magician in battle, you take damage equal to your Dark Magician's attack points!"

He gasps as Flame Wingman appears, looming over him. The Flame Wingman points his dragon's head at the leader and fires a torrent of flames. It's a good thing that attack isn't real or he would receive a serious degree burn.

The Dark Eradicator Guy's Life Points: 650 – 2500 = 0

The leader collapses down to the ground after his defeat and the holograms disappear. Seeing that I've defeated him, and the fact that the Enforcers are here, he quickly runs away while he's screaming for his revenge. It's quite a site to see a grown man in a costume crying.

As soon as he is gone from our field of vision, Rally and I started to explain to them why we're here. They are shock to find out that I'm working on a Duel Runner just like Yusei and the fact that Rally comes here looking for the parts that Yusei needs for his Duel Runner. I also ask them about their end with the other magicians of the Magician's Four. It seems that time when I saw Crow being chase was part of the plan to lure the Magician's Four into a trap. They manage to defeat them, but the leader runs away and that leads to our Duel.

"Still," Yusei spoke as he looks at Rally, "I'm glad that you're safe, Rally. Promise me that you'll tell us before pulling that kind of stunt again."

Rally nods his head and he smiles. "Yes, I promise."

"But before we leave," said Kalin with a grin, "let's say that this territory belongs to us, the Enforcers and Team Butterfly!"

We all cheer for this glorious day. As we're about to leave, the Enforcers invited me to Martha's place for a victory dinner. I accepted their invitation, though I wonder if I should tell my subordinates about this dinner. I just shrug as I decided to just give them leftovers. But I do wonder how much I can carry back for all my subordinates to eat.


	3. Team Butterfly

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have original characters. By the way, this chapter has no Dueling whatsoever.

Chapter 3: Team Butterfly

I heard metals clanking at each other. Hot sparks flying into the air and burn out when it reaches the ground. The smell of engine oil fills the air in my hideout. That's right; I am currently working on my Duel Runner. After retrieving those parts a few days ago, I've been working on my Duel Runner with a few little sleeps as possible. However, a subordinate who wears a maroon scarf enters the room.

"Boss, I think you should stop," he said in a concern tone. "You've been working on this Duel Runner for the past few days with no sleep. Are you in a rush or something?"

I stop my working as I wipe off the oil on my hands. "You can say that," I reply, "but it's none of your concern."

"Are you worried about Sector Security?"

"I am worried about them," I lied since the real reason I'm building the vehicle is to get into New Domino City.

The maroon scarf subordinate nods his head. "I understand that you, and some of the men here, are worried about them. But there's really nothing to worry about since they haven't attack us like the gangs."

I know that he's trying to reassure me, so I decided to humor him. "That is true, but you don't know when they'll strike. I heard an earlier report from another subordinate that the Enforcers almost got captured by them during their attack against one of the neighboring areas."

"By the way, Boss…" I look at him as if he's trying to be a bit more dramatic. "How come you, our leader, is the only girl leading a lot of men?"

"Is that a stupid question or a rhetorical one?"

Hearing my mean tone has made him to apologize to me very quickly. "I'm sorry, Boss! I didn't mean it like that! I'm new, that's all! Please forgive me!"

I chuckle. "I'm kidding. I remember that you're among of the new recruits who join the team, so I'm sorry for throwing that tone at you."

It doesn't seem likes my joke, but he still looks nervous. "So why then? I know that among everyone here, you're the toughest Duelist around. I bet you have better things to do than to lead a rag-tag group of men as a gang."

"That is true." I put my toolbox next to my bed as I sit on the bed. "Well, I guess you can say that the reason these men follow me is because I saved them."

"You… saved them? From what?"

"Do you remember about that earthquake five years ago?" I ask and he nods his head. "Some of the subordinates and I were at one of the old subway tunnels, though that tunnel was supposed to be my hideout. They try to intimidate me, but then the earthquake happens and it causes the ceiling above us to collapse."

"Wow!" he gasps in surprise. "How do you manage to save them? That earthquake kills about twenty people in Satellite, though most of them were people from New Domino City. And I'm pretty sure that you're supposed to be dead if a ton of debris come dropping on top of you."

"Do you know anything about Psychic Duelists?"

"Do I know them? Of course, I know them! Everyone knows them! They're Duelists with special powers that makes Duel Monsters real and the damage towards people also real! Wait… Boss, are you a Psychic Duelist?"

I scratch the back of my head. "Sort of," I replied in my unsure voice. "But I'm in more control of my own powers than any of the Psychic Duelists out there. I think…"

The maroon scarf subordinate chuckles. "Now I understand why Team Butterfly's motto is to use our powers to protect people. Thank you for telling me the team's origin. I'm going to tell the guys!" I watch him run off with a smile on his face.

I looked at my unfinished Duel Runner. Looking at its exposed parts and wires being plugged into my computer that shows me its stats has made me to ponder on some things.

 _Maybe he's right_ , I thought with a solemn look on my face. _I should take a break, but what I am going to do. Guess I should look around the area to see how everyone is doing._ And I did just that.

* * *

I arrive at the east outpost to "inspect" the guards there. I see two of my subordinates who are talking to each other and I decided to eavesdrop them.

The guy with the blue bandanna over his mouth asks the guy wearing some belts on his right arm, "Do you ever wonder why we're here?"

"That's one of life's biggest questions," he replies.

The bandanna guy shook his head. "No, that's not what I mean. I mean have you ever wonder why we're still stuck here in Satellite and work in those damn recycling plants? Don't you think there are people who would be worried about us?"

"Do I sense someone's morale dropping?" I said to get those two to turn around in surprise.

"Boss!" the bandanna guy gasps. "I'm sorry that you hear that! I didn't—!"

"That's okay," I interrupted his sentence. "But why are you asking that?"

"Yeah!" the belt guy agrees with me. "What's the deal, man? Are you becoming one of those extremists who hates the people in New Domino City?"

The bandanna guy told us that he's not an extremist. "Have you guys remembered the explosion that separates Satellite from New Domino City?"

He's talking about the Big Explosion Incident that happen over a decade ago. That explosion is the cause that makes Satellite an island. Many people died from that explosion and no one knows how that incident happen. I was too young to remember an explosion that big enough to make another section of a grand city into an island.

The bandanna guy explains to us that before that incident happen, he was a happy man with a wife and son living in New Domino City. He uses to work as a delivery truck driver and when he was about to finish his rounds, the explosion happens. He was lucky that he wasn't at the blast radius, but he was not lucky when he realizes that he's stuck on this island. Even though that he's glad that he found a place where fighting doesn't happen 24/7, which is funny since we're in a middle of a gang war, he still misses his wife and son. He often wonders if they're doing all right.

"Thank you for sharing your story," I said to reassure his feelings and the belt guy agrees with me. "I'm sure that one day, you'll be able to meet your wife and child again. You can't just give up hope if you think about them."

"Thanks, Boss! Actually, that incident is the same day when my son is supposed to be born."

"Wait!" the belt guy gasps. "Your son was born on the same day as the incident occur…? How do you know that you have a son?"

"Ultrasound," he bluntly answers. "And his name is Tim."

"Talk about an impatient parent. I can't believe you do something like that just to find out about your baby's gender."

"My wife and I were nervous okay! You be nervous too if you're having a child!"

"Yeah… That's not going to happen. I rather be a bachelor than being tied down."

I decided to break up this little argument between them. "Enough, you guys! I came here to inspect your side. Are there any casualties?"

"Negative," the belt guy answered bluntly.

"There are no casualties. Thanks to the Enforcers taking care of the east, no gangs have ever cause some trouble."

I thank them for their report as I took my leave and headed to the area where the children are. It took me about ten minutes to arrive at the abandoned building with a playground. At the playground, I see about ten children playing around along with three of my subordinates.

Two boys named Satoshi and Shinichi run up to me and they ask me to Duel them. I told them that I'm on a small break from playing Duel Monsters, which makes them to ask me more. Then two girls named Ash and Midori stop them from pestering me and they said that I promise to play with them, which I don't remember. Then the two sides start to argue while my subordinates just watch them fighting over me with a smile on their faces. I'm a bit fluster since I don't know how to deal with this kind of situation before.

"Okay, that's enough kids," said one of the subordinates as he broke up the fight. "Can't you guys see that your arguments are scaring her?"

"But she promises to play with us!" Satoshi exclaimed.

"Same here!" Ash argues.

"I'm really sorry," I bow my head as I spoke in a gentle tone. "I can't play right now since I'm busy doing my inspection. I promise that I will play with all of you tomorrow."

"Really?" They look at me with their sparkling with anticipation.

I nod my head with a smile. "Really! In fact, to make sure that I keep my promise to the both of you, I'm going to cook you some food. How's that?"

"No way!" they exclaimed as their sparkling eyes quickly turned eyes of disappointment. "You're a terrible cook!"

Their words hurt me as if I've been stabbed into the chest. _They don't have to be that cruel and honest!_ I want to cry right now.

The kids agree with the promise that I made them as they ran off somewhere to play with each other. Seeing that I'm still feeling sad from the kids' brutal honesty, one of the subordinates try to cheer me up. It didn't work, but I quickly pick myself up and remove the sadness off my face.

"So, Boss, what are you inspecting?" one of the subordinates ask.

"I just want to see how you guys are doing," I answer. "I see that there are no problems here."

The one whom I'm talking to chuckles as a response. "The kids are no trouble before you show up. Also, remember that doctor guy from some faraway place that we saved the day before the Enforcers came?"

"Yeah, I remember him. Why?"

"Thanks to him, some of the children aren't sick anymore! Isn't that great? If you want to talk to him, he's inside the abandoned building in the reception area."

I thank my subordinate for telling me that and I went inside the building. I see the doctor sitting on the reception desk who is bandaging up a boy's elbows. The doctor wears a purple lab coat over his blue shirt, dark red pants, and brown shoes. The boy thanks for the bandage as he runs outside, which causes the doctor to notice me.

"Hello, Kokoro," he said with a smile. "How are you today? And what are you doing here?"

"I'm doing fine," I answer as I made a slight giggled. "Also, I'm just wandering around to see how everyone is doing. By the way, thanks. If we hadn't saved you, the children and even the grown-ups would be in trouble when the sickness happens."

"I'm just doing my job. It's my duty as a doctor to save the lives of people from anything. And I can't do my duty in some hospital."

"Admirable." I look outside to see the children playing and the subordinates trying to keep up with their youthful energy. Seeing them has put a smile on my face. "Sometimes I wonder if my team can handle things without me."

The doctor notices the words that came out of my mouth. "Do you need someone to talk to? I can give you an objective answer to your question."

I shook my head. "Not really. I just have a habit of saying my thoughts aloud."

The doctor nods his head as if he puts the information inside his mental shelf. "When people say their thoughts aloud for someone to hear, that would mean that they have some things that they want to talk about. You can tell me, I'm a doctor with counseling experience."

"Does that experience only works on marriage?"

"Yes and no. If you have something to say to get it off your chest, then you can tell me."

"Even if it's about a girl's biological problem. Like periods or—!"

"Okay, even I know that I'm not qualified to talk about that."

"But you're a doctor!" I retorted. "Shouldn't you know about a girl's biological problem?"

He immediately leaves after that conversation. I really do want to talk to him about my problem, but due to him being nosy, I couldn't stop myself from getting him to stop being nosy. I make him uncomfortable from the conversation as an act of defense from the doctor's probing. Well, since he's gone, I decided to leave already.

* * *

"Are you boys okay?" I ask very bluntly.

During my "inspection," I've come across Kalin and the others who came walking into my team's territory. They look mad, except for Yusei who looks like he's contemplating on something, so I decided to talk to them. Last I heard of their activities, they were supposed to be attacking some gang's territory. I wonder if that's what upsets them.

Crow answers, "That's because Sector Security—!"

"Wait! Stop," I interrupted him, "I already know what happen. My subordinate reported your activities to me. I have to say I'm glad that you guys didn't get caught."

"If you knew, then don't ask!" Jack yells at me. It seems like I hit a nerve or something.

Then Kalin apologizes for Jack's behavior. "I'm sorry about the way he's acting. He is just upset that Sector Security interrupted his battle."

"So, Jack is the type of guy who doesn't like his fighting to be interrupted. Men are so typical."

Kalin retorts, "Hey, we're complicated!"

Then I said, "Your gang consist of four guys who wanted to fight all of the gangs in Satellite as if we're in the Sengoku Period. Yeah… you guys are really complicated."

"Okay," Crow spoke, "now you're just being sarcastic."

I quickly switch my interest to Yusei and I ask, "Are you feeling okay?"

Yusei answers, "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just wondering if I could make a makeshift CPU for my Duel Runner."

"That's impossible," I said, "A CPU is a complicated piece of machinery. You can make the frame or body of a CPU, but you cannot make a program that acts like the rest."

"I can if I make a copy from your CPU."

"That could work, but I highly recommend we don't do that. We could possibly destroy my CPU or even worse. I suggest that we find a Duel Runner parts dealer and beat him up for it!" I crack my knuckles when I say that. Then all frightened eyes look at me. "What? That's how I got my CPU, though I beat up that dealer because he tries to sell me some worthless junk."

Jack kicks a nearby piles of junk and the noise caught our attention. "Those damn Sector Securities! Interrupting my Duel! Kokoro! Duel me now!"

"I'm sorry, but I'm on break. I don't feel like Dueling anybody right now."

"How long were you in your hideout working on that Duel Runner of yours?" Crow asks as if he's pointing out the obvious.

I ignore him and continue talking to Jack. "I'm also busy with my inspection, so I don't have time to Duel you. Especially since I have to inspect every place where I stationed my thirty guys."

"Thirty guys?!" Kalin and Crow gasps in unison.

I tilt my head as if I try to remember that statement correctly. "You wouldn't believe how many people wanted to find a haven. Though I couldn't keep up on the people that we recruited. So, I left that problem to one of my subordinates."

"Sounds like a terrible leader," Crow comments.

I retort, "No leader is perfect. Take Kalin for an example."

"Yeah!" Kalin sounds like he agrees with me, but he later realizes what I mean by that. "What do you mean? I'm a great leader! I even gather information on every gang in Satellite and formulate plans of attack."

"And yet you couldn't figure out what deck I'm using when we first met."

"What's that supposed to mean? Your deck supposed to be an Elemental Hero deck?"

I explain to him that the Elemental Hero deck is not my real deck. I'm using this deck as a handicap for my opponents and I only use my real deck against a worthy Duelist. My train of thought of doing that is because I wanted to give myself a challenge. During this whole explanation, I just realized that I open the Pandora Box of Excitement among the battle junkies, except Yusei, here.

"Now I want to Duel you!" Kalin exclaims.

"No, I'm Dueling her!" Jack interjects.

"Duel me as well!" Crow joins in the madness.

Their approach is scaring me, even though I don't show it on my face. _I wonder how those female protagonists handle many guys fighting over them._ "Just think of the anticipation of my real deck as some sort of temptation for you guys to get stronger. I want to fight a worthy Duelist." I quickly leave the area before they started to ask me to Duel them.

* * *

A quick jump onto my bed and I felt extremely tired. I guess all of that walking around and talking to people has really tired me out. The good news is that I probably lost a lot of calories during that whole "inspection." Just as I am about to close my eyes, I heard a sound belonging to a cute animal.

That sound comes from the Duel Monster Spirit, Winged Kuriboh. Winged Kuriboh is a small monster that is covered in brown hair and has small angel-like wings. This small creature flies over to me as if it's trying to keep me up and it did. I wonder what Winged Kuriboh wants. That is when Silent Magician appears next to the small monster.

"Hey, guys!" I said with a smile. "What do you guys want?"

Silent Magician answers, "Winged Kuriboh just wanted to wish you a good rest, which he fails since he wakes you up. I show up because you woke up."

"Is there anything else?"

Before they can say anything, we heard someone calling me. They quickly jump next to me as that maroon scarf wearing subordinate enters the hideout. He seems to be in distress because he just runs up to me. I wonder what's wrong.

I ask, "Is there something wrong?"

"We have been attacked," he answers, "Some small gang got through the defenses and started to attack at where the children are being kept. The guys being stationed there can stop them, but they look so tough! Boss, you must help! Please!"

I decided to go as I grab my deck and Duel Disk. _Finally, some excitement,_ I thought as I follow my subordinate.

* * *

When we arrive at where the children are, the battle was already over. The doctor explains to me that the Enforcers arrive and defeated those guys before I show up. Even though I should be thankful for Kalin and the others protecting the kids from the enemy, I still couldn't believe that they didn't leave one for me. According to the doctor, Yusei and Crow are busy tying up the five unconscious guys who are from some gang, while Jack and Kalin is interrogating the last one who isn't unconscious. Yusei and Crow are having it easy, while Jack and Kalin aren't too pleased with their interrogation.

"WHY WON'T HE TALK!?" Kalin yells at the top of his lungs.

"I told you it's pointless, Kalin," said Jack as if he's stating the obvious.

Kalin kicks a nearby trash can at which that can flies over my subordinates that ducks for cover. "I try every tactic I know to get him to spill the beans, but he keeps his mouth shut! Threatening doesn't work! Physical abuse doesn't work! Even making fun of his mother doesn't work!"

Then Yusei spoke, "I wonder why these guys attack here. If they got through the defenses, wouldn't they just keep slipping by until they reach Kokoro's hideout?"

"That does sound more logical than here," said Crow, "but I bet that they're going to kidnapped the children to force Kokoro into some sort of shady deal for their safety. That would make sense given the Team Butterfly's motto."

I felt someone tugging the back of my shirt. I turned around and see the four children who were fighting over for me earlier. They look down at the ground with sadness in their eyes.

A little girl spoke, "Kokoro… we're sorry."

Then the boy added, "I bet we're a hindrance to you, huh."

I shook my head. "No, you're not. Even if they manage to kidnap you, I would keep on saving all of you no matter what." They still look sad despite what I said, I guess to only cheer them up is to play with them tomorrow.

Jack crosses his arms and said, "We still don't know which gang they belong to. Even if we wait for the other guys to wake up, they wouldn't tell us. These guys have the guts to sneak pass the defense. That means they're skill enough to never rat out their gang, even if they die."

"That's a big 'if'. Let me try," I said, "I'm great at getting people to talk."

I ask Kalin about the prisoner's location and he told me that he's kept inside one of the rooms in the building with a guard watching him. Then I ask the doctor for his bag, which he once told me that it's filled with surgical tools and medicine. The doctor gave me his bag and I went inside the building to where the prisoner is being held, while ignoring everyone asking me questions.

I told the subordinate who is guarding the prisoner's door to let me in. He complies and I enter the room to meet the prisoner. The prisoner has a brown Mohawk and he wears a brown jacket vest over his green shirt, gray slacks, and brown shoes. His body has been tied down to a folding chair, which means he's not going anywhere. The prisoner notices me and he just smirks.

He smugly asks, "What's a fine lady like yourself doing here?"

"Hi," I said, "My name is Kokoro Fernandez and I'm here to get some information out of you."

"If you think putting some makeup on me would make me talk, then you got another thing coming. I won't talk, even if you try to tickle me. Of course, I would talk if you give me _something_ to offer."

I ignore that last sentence as I unzipped the bag. "Do you know what's inside this bag? This bag belongs to a doctor who has been taking care of the children here and he told me that this bag is filled with surgical tools. You know what surgical tools are, right? They're tools that are sharp and will peel your skin like a fruit."

The prisoner starts to sweat. "H-Hey! Why would someone give you that? Shouldn't a doctor make sure to prevent anyone to be using his tools?"

"Well, I'm special. And do you want to know why I'm special?" I ask with a smile that is hiding my sadistic face, even though the aura sort of oozes out of me. It seems like I'm scaring him since he's dripping even more sweat. "I'm special because I'm the leader of Team Butterfly. I don't like it when someone is attacking innocent children, but I want to know who you're working for. Even if it means that I'm going to use you as my practice dummy for my surgical skills. Shall we see how good I've come so far?"

The prisoner is dripping out buckets of sweat as he becomes white as a ghost. His last words were "Help me" before I started to do my style of interrogation.


	4. Dirty Works

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have original characters.

Chapter 4: Dirty Works

I open the door to see the guard becomes white and shaking in fear. When I talk to him, he immediately jumps up screaming. I told him to calm down, which he did; however, he is still shaken. I order him to get the doctor to help me with the prisoner to keep him alive since I don't like killing people during my "interrogation." He complies and he quickly runs.

A moment later, the doctor shows up with Kalin who looks worried. The doctor asks, "How may I be of assistance?

While Kalin asks, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Kalin," I said. Then I turned to the doctor. "I want you to bandage up the prisoner from my interrogation."

"What did you do?" I let him enter the room to see the prisoner.

The prisoner has blood coming out of his arms and legs. The blood oozes out underneath his seat. There are even some surgical knives on his body. His face has tears streaming out of his eyes. Seeing this sight has scared both Kalin and the doctor as they fearfully look at me.

I scratch the back of my head. "So yeah… please make sure to bandage him up and keep him alive. I don't want to be labeled as a murderer because of this."

"Is he even still alive?" Kalin asks.

"Let me check!" I exclaimed with a smile. I started humming a song in a very happy manner.

My humming has made the prisoner scream so loud as if he woken up from a nightmare. He starts struggling to get himself free from his binds as he screams, "STOP THAT WOMAN FROM HUMMING THAT TERRIBLE SONG! IT'S TOO HAPPY! IT'S TOO PAINFUL!" The doctor quickly helps the prisoner from struggling so wildly as if he's dealing with a crazy patient.

"Yeah, he's awake," I said to Kalin. "I've been singing a song that is in tuned with that guy's screaming. By the way, I got the information out of him."

"Really? What's the information?"

"The prisoner's name is Gary. He works for Dirty Works, a gang known for their underhand plays of winning. The reason why he and his five men came to where the children are being kept is to kidnap them and use them for some kind of ransom. By the way, Dirty Works' leader is named Felix and their base of operations is the abandoned bowling alley, just northwest from here."

Kalin is being skeptical of the information I have given him. "Is that information accurate?"

"Let me check to be sure. HEY, GARY! IS THE INFORMATION ACCURATE? YOU BETTER NOT BE LYING!"

"YES!" Gary screams like a little girl. "THE INFORMATION IS ACCURATE! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, PLEASE GET THAT PSYCHO BITCH AWAY FROM ME!"

I nod my head to Kalin. "You heard the man," I said with a smirk.

"Kokoro… you're scary."

We leave the doctor with Gary as he starts to treat him from his wounds. We told the others about the information and they look excited for a fight. I help Kalin to plan out our attack against Dirty Works. At first Kalin and the others didn't want me to help them, but I told them that since Dirty Works attack my territory it makes it my business as well. The plan goes as follows: Yusei and Kalin will enter the front entrance to attract some of the members, while Crow, Jack, and I sneak from the back to pin them down. With the plan set, we immediately leave to face Dirty Works.

* * *

The abandoned bowling alley looks ruined. Then again all the buildings in Satellite are exactly like that, so I wouldn't be surprised. Crow manages to unlock the back door and we get inside while Yusei and Kalin distracts the people at the front. I look around to notice that no one is here.

"Seems like the plan is going smoothly," I said. "Want to split up?"

Crow smirks. "Sure! I'll go help Yusei and Kalin. I'm sure they're in trouble right about now."

"And I'll go find their leader," Jack spoke.

Then I playfully reply, "Not before I get to him first. He has to pay for what he has done." I see Jack smirking, which means he thinks that I'm proposing a challenge to him. "Also, be careful for traps. Dirty Works are known for their underhand plays."

Jack scoffs, "Those who uses dirty tricks don't deserve to be called Duelists."

With that being said, we split up and do our own thing. I walk into the staff corridor area because I believe that this Felix guy is hiding there. There are four doors to my left and I check on each of them. The first door is an empty supply closet, the second door is a broken down locker room, and the third door is an empty room. As I'm about to enter through the fourth door, I heard someone's voice and I stop myself to listen.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!" a man's voice shouts through the door. "This isn't how I planned it. How come the Enforcers are here? Gary and the others shouldn't have told them anything."

I slowly open the door and I said, "If I were you, you shouldn't have try and attack us."

The person I'm talking to turns to me. He has a brown buzz cut and light skin. He wears an orange sleeveless shirt that is tight, black cargo pants, and black boots. On his right arm is his Duel Disk and his brown belt has this small box that hold his deck.

"Dirty Works does live up to their name."

"Who are you?" the man asks as he points at me.

I answer, "I'm the leader of Team Butterfly, Kokoro Fernandez. And you must be Felix, the leader of Dirty Works."

"So… I guess Gary fails. I knew that idiot can't get the job done properly."

I coolly walk in the room as I continue to talk. "You should keep track when the Enforcers come into my territory. If you did, you would probably find an alternate route of your plan. So why did you attack my territory?"

Felix laughs. "Why, you ask!? That's because you have the biggest gang than any of the gangs here! Yet, you never expanded your territory and you teamed up with the Enforcers! Many of the gangs, including mine's, aren't too happy about that."

"I couldn't blame you. But… the one who is not happy here is me. You attack my territory… you attack the children that my gang is protecting… I will not forgive anyone who does that!" I throw my rope to bind his arm with the Duel Disk to make sure that he won't run away from me.

However, he isn't afraid of what I did as he activates his Duel Disk and inserted his deck. "I don't need your forgiveness, girly. I'm going to show you that protecting people is stupid. Are you ready?" He draws his five cards from his deck

I scoff at him as I activate my Duel Disk and I draw my five cards. "It's time to Duel!"

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000

Felix's Life Points: 4000

"Time to show you what I made of! Draw!" He draws a card from his deck. "I summon Alpha the Magnet Warrior in attack mode!" A skinny machine-like warrior appears in front of him. The warrior wields a magnet shield and a sword with magnet hilt guard.

Alpha the Magnet Warrior: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 1400 DEF: 1700

"I end my turn by placing a card facedown," he said as a card appears behind the Magnet Warrior.

"It's show time! Draw!" I draw a card from my deck. "I discard one card from my hand to special summon The Tricky in attack mode!" A jester-like magician appears in front of me.

The Tricky: Level 5, Wind

ATK: 2000 DEF: 1200

"While I'm at it, I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior to join in the fray!" A red warrior dress like a wizard in a knight's outfit appears next to The Tricky as he points his sword at Felix.

Breaker the Magical Warrior: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 1600 DEF: 1000

Then Breaker's special ability activates. When he is summoned, Breaker gains a Counter and 300 attack points from that Counter.

Breaker's Counter: 0 + 1 = 1

ATK: 1600 + 300 = 1900

"Time to activate Breaker's second ability!" I exclaimed. "By removing his Counter, I can destroy one spell/trap card on the field! The card I choose is your facedown!"

Breaker's sword glows bright. He swings that sword to let that light fly towards the facedown card.

Breaker's Counter: 1 – 1 = 0

ATK: 1900 – 300 = 1600

However, he activates his facedown before its destruction. "I activate the trap card, Threatening Roar! This trap prevents your monsters from attacking me during the remainder of your turn." The trap card creates a wave that blows a strong gust of wind before it got cuts down by Breaker's effect. He smirks, but then he notices something off here. "I thought you're using an Elemental Hero deck! Why are you playing Spellcasters?"

"Let's just say that this deck is a perfect one to punish you," I answer in a sadistic tone as if I'm trying to scare him.

But my scare tactic didn't work on him as he just laughs. "You're only underestimating me… That is your mistake!"

"Whatever… I end my turn by placing one card facedown." A card appears behind my two Spellcasters.

Felix draws a card from his deck. "I summon Torapart!" Torapart appears and he is two doll-like monsters as one monster. The two monsters are attach from their legs by a wooden board.

Torapart: Level 2, Dark

ATK: 600 DEF: 600

"I tuned Alpha the Magnet Warrior with Torapart to synchro-summon Gravity Warrior!"

Torapart transforms into two green rings that Alpha the Magnet Warrior jumps into. Alpha transforms into four balls of light and then later becomes a beam of light. Coming out of that light is a blue robot warrior with a lion's head descends to the ground.

Gravity Warrior: Level 6, Earth

ATK: 2100 DEF: 1000

"Torapart's ability activates! If I used him for a synchro-summon, you cannot activate your facedown card during the remainder of my turn. Also, Gravity Warrior's ability activates! He gains 300 attack points for every monster on your side of the field."

Gravity Warrior: ATK: 2100 + 600 = 2700

Felix orders his Gravity Warrior to attack The Tricky. Gravity Warriors punches The Tricky down the ground and that punch is strong enough to make him to disappear. He ends his turn from just doing that.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000 – 700 = 3300

Gravity Warrior: ATK: 2700 – 300 = 2400

I draw a card from my deck. "I sacrifice Breaker the Magical Warrior to summon Dark Magician Girl!" A blonde hair girl in a light blue female mage's outfit replaces Breaker as she happily winks at Felix.

Dark Magician Girl: Level 6, Dark

ATK 2000 DEF: 1700

"Dark Magician Girl's ability activates! If there's a Dark Magician in our graveyards, she gains 300 boost in her attack points. I have one in my graveyard!" I discard a Dark Magician earlier ago when I summoned The Tricky.

Dark Magician Girl: ATK: 2000 + 300 = 2300

Felix laughs when he sees Dark Magician Girl. "Even with that power boost, that girl isn't strong enough to beat Gravity Warrior."

"I attack your Gravity Warrior with my Dark Magician Girl!" Dark Magician Girl flies at the blue robot in a serious manner, which surprises Felix.

"Are you nuts? That girl isn't strong to beat my monster! Don't tell me that you finally loss it!"

"That's what you think! I activate this Quick-Play Spell card, Ego Boost! This spell gives my Dark Magician Girl an attack boost of 1000 during the battle!"

Dark Magician Girl: ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300

Felix is shock to see this happening. Dark Magician Girl places the tip of her staff at the robot's stomach. She uses her dark magic to destroy his body like fireworks. I end my turn after seeing that.

Felix's Life Points: 4000 – 900 = 3100

Dark Magician Girl: ATK: 3300 – 1000 = 2300

"You'll pay for that," he growls in anger as he draws his card. "I summon Gearfried the Iron Knight!" A black knight whose right arm is a huge blade and his left arm is a shield appears.

Gearfried the Iron Knight: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 1800 DEF: 1600

"While I'm at it, I activate the spell card, Release Restraints! This card allows my Gearfried the Iron Knight to become Gearfried the Swordmaster from my deck!" Gearfried removes his black armor to reveal that he's a muscular man with long black hair and he is wearing a loincloth and boots. He also wields a sword made of pure light as he stares down at my Dark Magician Girl.

Gearfried the Swordmaster: Level 7, Light

ATK: 2600 DEF: 2200

He orders Gearfried to attack my Dark Magician Girl. However, I reveal my trap card, Widespread Ruin. This trap only activates if Felix declares an attack and it destroys Gearfried in an explosion. Seeing his monster's destruction has made him to end his turn, not before he has something to say to me.

"You may have destroyed my monster," he said, "but that doesn't mean you win! Even if you defeat me, I will continue to come back in retaliation! I may even harm more than just the children that you're protecting."

Hearing what he said has made me snap as I feel a strong power flowing into my body. I haven't felt this power for so long that I may need to try my best to hold it in. But my mind and heart agree to make him suffer. I look at Dark Magician Girl and she looks at me with a serious look. She looks into my eyes as if she's reading my mind and she nods her head.

I draw a card from my deck. "I'm sorry, Felix," I said, "I'm going to end you, right here and now! I summon my partner, Silent Magician!" Silent Magician appears next to Dark Magician Girl as she turns to me with a smile.

Silent Magician: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000

I order Silent Magician to a direct attack at Felix's life points. She fires a white ball of magic from her staff to Felix as he took the full hit, not powerful though, from that attack. That attack sends him crashing at the wall and that looks painful.

Felix's Life Points: 3100 – 1000 = 2100

"What the hell?!" he gasps in pain. "Why do I feel pain from that attack? What the hell did you do?"

"I can't tell you," I answer with a sinister smirk. "You're getting your well-deserved punishment from attacking my territory. Feel my wrath!"

"Wait!" he exclaims. "Can't we talk about this? How's about I made you a deal?" Felix is getting desperate; though how come I have a feeling that he's stalling for something.

Then Silent Magician shouted, "KOKORO! BEHIND YOU! DUCK!"

I quickly follow that order and I duck down from a surprise attack. It seems like Felix's subordinate is trying to attack me. But thanks to Silent Magician's warning, I retaliate by kicking that guy at his stomach. That kick is so strong that it sends that subordinate flying straight into the wall and makes him unconscious.

"Got you!" I heard Felix exclaiming that word as I heard the sound of his footsteps as if he's running at me.

However, I order my Dark Magician Girl to attack him and she did. She fires a ball of dark magic at him before he reaches me. I turned to see Felix's body being engulf into that ball as it flies towards the wall and creates a huge hole after its collision. I hear surprises coming from the other side, which I believe that they're surprise to see a ball of dark magic with Felix inside passing by. I think I won that Duel as my monsters disappear.

Felix's Life Points: 2100 – 2300 = 0

"What the hell just happen?" I turned to see Crow who is looking at me through the huge hole that my monster has made. "Kokoro, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Crow," I answer with a happy smile.

"That's good…" he sighs in relief. "I heard a huge explosion coming from here and I had to check it out!"

"Did you guys just see a huge ball of black energy flying by here?" Then Kalin appears next to Crow. "It knocks down about three members of Dirty Works! Also, inside that ball just so happen to be their leader, Felix, who is at the entrance of the bowling alley. Seeing their leader like that has made the remaining forces to retreat for good."

"Is Felix okay?" I ask in concern because I think I overdid my power just a bit.

"I check on him and it seems like he's fine. Unconscious, but he's still fine. But Kokoro… do you know what happen to him?"

Crow jumps in the conversation. "Judging from your Duel Disk and the fact that you're at the other side of this hole, it seems like you have a Duel with that guy and won. Can you tell us how this happen?"

I look at their worried faces and I know that I have to come clean with them. I told them that I will tell them as soon as we regrouped with Jack and Yusei. We met with those two at the entrance where I see an unconscious Felix who is burned and upside-down at the wall. I figure that is where he landed from Dark Magician Girl's attack. By the way, Jack is upset that I beat Dirty Works' leader before he did.

"Since we're all here," I said, "I have something to tell you guys. You see, guys… I'm a Psychic Duelist."

"WHAT?!" they all gasped in unison.

I shook my head. "No, wait! What I meant to say that I have the same powers as a Psychic Duelist, but it's a bit different."

"What's the difference?" Jack and Crow bluntly ask that question.

"It's a little hard to explain," I spoke in a nervous tone. "Let's just say it's genetic from my mom's side of the family and leave it at that. Also, I have good control of my powers. I only use it against people who made me mad like Felix over there." I'm starting to feel a little worried if they see me as a monster. I could feel my eyes to water a bit from the thought that they would treat me like that.

"Come on, Kokoro," said Kalin as I look at him. It seems like he has no idea how to handle this kind of situation. "You don't need to cry. I still see you as you! Right, guys?"

Yusei nods his head. "I agree. You're the same as us, a human."

"If anyone treats you like a monster than they have another thing coming," Crow spoke with a smile.

Jack clicks his tongue. "I don't personally care. As long as you are a Duelist, I will see you as a challenge, got it!"

Crow looks at him with a sullen look on his face. "Wow, Jack… will you just read the mood here?"

"That's okay, Crow." I wipe off the tears with a smile. "Thanks, guys. I really appreciate it."

Kalin declares that this battle's victory goes to the Enforcers and Team Butterfly. We then went our separate ways as I return home with a big smile on my face.

* * *

The doctor greeted me on my return. I saw him at the front entrance of my hideout. The reason why he's there is because he wants to give out his report of what happen since I left. He manages to save Gary's life, but he will be having mental issues due to what I did to him earlier. The other prisoners haven't done anything since my subordinates keep an eye on them and the fact that the doctor shows them the damaged Gary, which made them to be on their best behavior.

"What do you want us to do with the prisoners?" he asks.

"Just release them," I bluntly answer. "Also, tell them that Dirty Works is no more and if they try anything funny, they will suffer the same fate as Gary."

The doctor is awe when I say that. "Nice threat! That'll keep them away for a while at least. I'll be going now." He leaves the hideout.

I notice that it's night time now, so I lie on top of my bed. I felt my body so exhausted because I've been through tiring and exciting events within just one day. But I also felt happiness in my heart because I have friends who sees me as a person.

Then Silent Magician and Winged Kuriboh appear next to my bed. Winged Kuriboh wishes me a good night sleep, while Silent Magician looks at me as if she has something to say.

"Silent Magician," I said, "thank you for warning me about that sneak attack. I would be in trouble if you hadn't done that."

"No problem," she replies. "Aren't you glad that you didn't accidentally killed anyone today?"  
I nod my head. "Yeah… But I do hope what I did to Felix won't come back to haunt me. I just have this weird, nagging feeling that it will and the scary part is that I don't know when that feeling is going to be right."

"What are you? Some kind of prophet? I highly doubt something like that is going to happen."

"I guess you're right. Good night, you two." The two Duel Monster Spirits disappear as soon as I close my eyes and drift off to sleep.

* * *

The next day I've been playing with the children in the game of tag. I did promise them that I would play with them, though I was expecting it would be Duel Monsters. Regardless, it's a great excuse for me to get some exercise. However, after fifteen minutes of chasing them, I'm out of stamina and those kids aren't. How are these kids have this much energy?

Satoshi started laughing. "What's wrong, Kokoro? Can't keep up?"

I took some few seconds to catch my breath. "Of course I can't keep up!" I replied. "You kids are just too fast!"

Midori said, "It's maybe because that you've gotten old!"

"Old!?" I'm shock to hear that coming from a child. "I'm not that old! I'm eighteen! That's it! You kids are going to get it!" And the chase continues.

About an hour later, the game of tag and even hide and seek are over and I'm sitting on this huge debris as I breath heavily. The kids are satisfied with our play time as they went into the abandoned building for the doctor's cooking. I could join in with them, but I choose to rest here so I can feel the breeze.

"Guess those kids are right," I said as I slowly breath. "I am getting old. I am jealous of their energetic youth." Which is ironic since I am eighteen.

"That was fun to see you chasing those kids like you were chasing an escaped cattle!" a western female voice exclaimed behind me. "Partner, that's the beauty of youth like them! They have so much life! Don't you agree?"

"Yeah, I kind of agree what you said there." After a blink, I realized I don't know who I am talking to as I turned around.

Standing behind me is a teenage girl who has light-tanned skin and long, dark brown hair that reaches pass her shoulders. Her clothing makes her looks like a female version of a cowboy, or cowgirl to be accurate. She wears brown vest over her brownish gray long-sleeved shirt, a brown skirt, black leggings, and brown cowboy boots. She also wears a cowboy hat and a hoister on her belt that holds her gun.

The girl looks at me with a smile. With a tip of her hat, she said, "Nice to meet you! I'm new to this place and I would kindly need your help. Do you know where I can find a good Duel Runner parts store?"

"Who are you?" I ask as I readied myself for a fight.

"Whoa…! You don't need to be that hostile there, Sweetie. But I understand why you're being hostile since I'm a stranger here. My name is Jasmine Church and I'm from Crash Town! Now can you please help me?" She smiles at me and for some reason, I don't feel the need to be hostile to her.

"My name is Kokoro Fernandez," I replied in a polite manner, "and I would kindly help you."


	5. A Crash Visit

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have original characters.

Chapter 5: A Crash Visit

"So why are you looking for a Duel Runner parts store?" I ask Jasmine.

Jasmine explains that her friend named Toru has asked her to get them since she and her grandpa are coming to Satellite for business. By the way, her grandpa works at a pub in Crash Town. Anyway, her friend is working on his Duel Runner and he needed the parts he wrote down in a list that he has given her. The reason her friend thinks that Satellite has the parts he needs because someone told him that this place has them in a very cheap price. I wonder who told them that because it felt like a joke.

"Talk about a small world," I said with a chuckle. "I too am working on my Duel Runner and I also have a friend doing the same thing. For some reason, I should really stop meeting people who are related into building themselves a Duel Runner."

"Isn't that a hoot?" Jasmine laughs as well.

"Can I see your list?" I politely ask and she hands me the paper. I look over the list and thought to myself; _I could make these parts out of the junk here._ But considering that this girl here is looking for a store that sell these parts and the fact that she's from a faraway place, I think that I should teach her what Satellite is like. So, she won't be fool by anyone again.

Jasmine starts pouting as if she doesn't like how long that I've been staring at this piece of paper. "Let me take a guess, the parts that Toru is looking for is not here, right?"

"Oh, they are here!" I lied as I give the list back to her. "The problem is that I don't know which dealer has them. I usually let others to find them for me. For example, that guy!" I pointed at the subordinate with the maroon scarf who has been walking into the area. I called for him and he complies.

He salutes and asks, "What can I do for you, Boss?"

"Boss?" Jasmine tilts her head.

I explain, "I'm the leader of a gang called Team Butterfly and you just happen to be in my territory. Don't worry; my gang is a bunch of nice people!"

She is at awe when she heard that I'm a gang leader. "Yowzah! I didn't expect you to be a gang leader! Do you order people around and torment those who defy your order?"

"I do boss people around, but I would never torment my subordinates. Besides, I give them a bit of agency." Then I turn my attention to the maroon scarf subordinate. "I want you to find a Duel Runner dealer or anyone who knows a dealer!"

"Why, Boss?" He questions me with a shocked expression. "The dealers here are pretty much—!"

I shut his mouth before he finishes his sentence in front of Jasmine. I told Jasmine that I'm going to talk to this guy alone and it won't be long. I take my subordinate out of her hearing range and I talk to him about my plan.

"You're planning to do what?!" he gasps.

"I'm planning to teach that girl a lesson about Satellite. Whoever told her friend about the parts is only causing trouble for her since we're in the middle of a gang war. If I don't teach her soon, then there's going to be a problem where I'm involved in it somehow."

"Uh, how are you going to be involved?"

"I don't know! Are you going to stand here or are you going to follow my orders?"

He sighs. "Fine, I'll find you a dealer. I'm going to need to ask the others for help."

"I'm sorry for that tone, I'm just a little agitated from the thought of leaving her alone. I don't want the guilt eating me. So, if you find a dealer or someone who knows one, be sure to report it to me."

The subordinate nods his head as he leaves the area. I walk back to Jasmine who has been waiting for me. I told her that the search is going to take some time, so I advised her that we should hang out at my hideout until we got word from my subordinate. She was reluctant because she doesn't know when her grandpa would be done with his business, but I managed to convince her to come to my hideout. After all, it's nice to talk to another girl at my age for such a long time.

* * *

I serve a tin cup of water to Jasmine as we're sitting next to each other on my bed. We started a conversation about our lives and what kind of people we are.

Jasmine spoke first as she said, "I lived in Crash Town with my grandpa ever since my parents left me. I have friends there like Nico, West, and Toru, of course."

"Where's Crash Town? Is it far from Satellite?" I ask out of curiosity.

"Yeah, it's at the desert area that is far away from New Domino City. Grandpa and I got here is because Grandpa's friend owns a boat that helps with his business."

I ask her another question. "Is Crash Town a peaceful place?"

Jasmine makes a grim face when I ask her that question. She sadly answers, "No, it isn't peaceful. There are two big gangs that own the town and fight each other to get workers to work in the mines to gather the rare mineral called Dyne."

 _Dyne!_ I remember about that mineral. It's a mineral that were used for Duel Runners to make them run. I can imagine that the mining operation would make anyone rich due to a huge demand for Duel Runners.

She continues talking about these two big gangs. "The two big gangs are the Malcom Crew and the Radley Bunch. They gather Duelists who lived in the town and/or come for a challenge, have them joined their gangs and Duel against each other. Whoever wins will live in the 'lap of luxury'; while the loser is sent into the mines and they will never come out. It's because of this, the folks are too afraid to stand up to them. Everyone is living in constant fear of those two big bullies."

"Why couldn't they just leave? If they hate the place because of them, then wouldn't it be simple to leave?"

"That's easy for you to say there, Partner. But there's a reason they couldn't leave. It's their home and they couldn't abandon it. Toru can since he's planning to become one of the greatest Duelists in the world, but I don't want to leave. If I leave, Nico and West could be in trouble since their father isn't around! I'm like their only family to them!"

I sadly look at her because I felt like I offended her. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you or anything. I just like to state the obvious things."

Then her emotion took a 180 degree turn as she immediately, and cheerfully, hugs me. "That's okay, Sweetie! We're just getting to know each other!"

"First," I spoke, "can you please don't call me 'Sweetie' or 'Partner'? Just call me by my first name."

"Sure thing, Koko!" she cheerfully exclaims.

 _I'm okay with that nickname._ I chuckle and I said, "You're quite peppy, you know that."

"Okay! Now tell me about yourself!"

I nod my head and I started to tell her about myself. "I use to live with my mom, but she left me at some point of my young life."

"What about your papa, Koko?" she bluntly asks.

"I don't know who my dad is. He could be dead for all I care."

"Wow… no love for papa," Jasmine comments.

I sigh and I continue my story. "Anyway, my mom left me and I have to survive in this terrible condition of an island on my own. Then I become a leader of a gang called Team Butterfly and we dedicate our lives into protecting this territory for the children. I also work on my Duel Runner."

"But for what purpose?"

I've become hesitant to answer that question. I'm not even sure it's okay to say my purpose since we're waiting for the report to come in. But I decided to answer her question. "The purpose of leaving Satellite to find my mother," I said in a sad tone.

"Really? Are you going to find your mama and ask her why she leaves you?"

"No," I spoke in a serious tone. "My mom is the one person who I want to defeat! Before she left, all we did was Duel and I have never beaten her. Even though I couldn't win, I felt happy because that's the only bond we have."

Jasmine sullenly looks at me. "So, when she left you, you felt like that bond you two have is gone."

I nod my head. "But the problem is my gang and my friends. If I leave without telling them about my plans, they would probably hate me."

"I don't think so." I wonder what she means by that. "When you were talking to that guy wearing that maroon scarf, he doesn't seem like he hates you when you give him the order. Of course, I didn't hear what you guys said, but I can tell that guy doesn't seem like he is upset when you're bossing him around. If he doesn't show signs of hatred, then I bet the others are the same because they trust you."

"They trust me…?" I repeated her words.

Thinking about it now, I think they do trust me. My subordinates are always grateful whenever I talk to them like a friend and they always respected me. I never look down on them and I even supported them whenever they're down. I do remember some of the fun times like the birthday parties for the children and practices. They didn't show signs of animosity towards me and I'm happy for that.

"Awesome! You're smiling!" Jasmine exclaims and that surprises me.

I didn't even notice I was smiling during my pondering. I guess I'm happy to think about my subordinates treating me like a friend rather than an enemy.

Suddenly, the subordinate with the maroon scarf enters the hideout. He gave me a report that he found someone who knows of a dealer not too far outside of my territory. It's a guy named Gordon and he won't tell my subordinate where this dealer is, unless he meets the person who is looking for one. I told my subordinate that I'll be escorting Jasmine to meet this Gordon guy. He obviously refused the idea since he worries about my safety, as do the rest of the men in my territory, but I told him that I don't want Gordon to run away when I bring a mob with me. So, he concedes to my order and after he told us the directions to Gordon's location, we leave the hideout.

* * *

We arrive at the three-way intersection at the southern parts of Satellite. Standing in the middle of the intersection is Gordon. He's a scraggily-looking middle-aged man who has slightly tan skin, a brown bowl cut, and a very light mustache. He wears a dark red long sleeved shirt, blue jeans, and brown shoes.

Gordon is happy to see us as he rubs his hands together like some sneaky thief. He said, "Nice to meet you, girls. My name is Gordon. I've been told by a man who has been asking me if I know a dealer. When I ask him why he needs to see a dealer, he told me that some foreigner chick is looking for one. I take it that's you, cowgirl."

"Darn tootin!" Jasmine happily replies. "Are you going to tell us, sir?"

I keep watch silently as I don't want to interrupt their conversation. I know it's going to be a scam, but I'm not sure when that scam's going to happen. After all, this is a good learning experience for Jasmine.

According to Gordon that the intersection at his right will lead us to a dead-end alley way. At the end of the alley is a Duel Runner parts store that looks abandoned, but lives a dealer who would "honestly" gives us the parts that Jasmine needed if we pay for them. The prices there are cheap and reasonable, which I don't believe to be. Jasmine is happy to hear that there's a dealer who would give her the parts that Toru needs, but she doesn't seem to realize something off. Nonetheless, we went to the store, except for Gordon who has things to do.

We went inside and meet the dealer, who is a man. The inside of his store looks like a mechanic's shop, but in a market style with tools on shelf on the side and parts on the other shelf on the other side. "Greetings," he said with a smile, "are you the costumers that Gordon sends?"

"Yep!" Jasmine answers. "I would like to know if you have these parts on sale. Or the very least, have." She hands the dealer her list.

He scans the list for a few seconds as he nods his head. "Yes, I do believe I have them. Please wait right here. I'm going to check the back." He walks at the back door of the store.

Jasmine grabs my heads as she jumps for joy like a little. "Today's the best day ever! I've made a new friend and I finally made Toru happy! I can't wait to see the look on his face!"

It's great to hear that I've become her friend, but I wonder what her reaction would be like when she finds out that I know about the scam before she has time to realize it. It pains my heart to think that she would hate me for not telling her sooner. So, I keep mentally telling myself that it's for the greater good.

The dealer comes back with a big bag in hand and it seems like it's a bit heavy. "I have the parts. And here's the price I'm looking for."

He hands her a receipt with the price. I took a glance at the receipt and I found out that the price seems reasonable. When he hands her the bag, we took a quick peek inside. I see the parts and I notice that it's a bunch of junk that just slaps in together to become what it looks like. Jasmine has no idea that these parts are junk from just looking at it and she immediately hands him the money that she got from Toru, which for some reason it's at the same exact amount that is shown on the receipt. I'm not sure if I should applaud or be disgusted on the money being spend.

* * *

"Now I can return home with the things that make Toru happy!" said Jasmine as we leave the store.

Then I spoke, "You better be careful with those parts. I don't like the idea of making your friends sad."

"Don't worry! I am careful!" she cheerfully announces.

Suddenly, someone bumped into us and started to run off. The bump is strong enough push us down to the ground. It may be a few seconds, but it seems like the person who bumped us is Gordon and he's running away.

I turned to Jasmine and I ask, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she answers. She looks around the ground and she notices something missing. "Koko, where's the bag with the parts?"

I quickly figure out the scam at that moment. It seems like Gordon and the dealer are partners in crime to lure out potential suckers into paying for the "part," but to let them be stolen again afterwards to be reused again. Since the sucker pays for the parts to only be stolen again, the sucker won't be asking for a refund without proof of the swindle. I told her this as we chase after Gordon.

"If you knew about the scam, why didn't you tell me?"

"It's better for you to know what kind of a place Satellite is by first-hand experience than telling you."

"You're a horrible friend, you know that." She pouts when she says that.

I comment, "That's just tough love. My mom uses that tactic on me when I was a kid."

"Then your mom is a terrible influence!"

I sigh. "I'm sorry, okay. I'm just trying to teach you that Satellite is not an honest place to begin with. I live here all of my life and I know how these people will lie their way to survive."

"Guess there's no safe place anywhere."

We have follow Gordon to an abandoned building and we saw him enter inside. We try to enter, but some random guy wearing a biker gang's outfit steps out of the building and he prevents from entering.

The biker guys said, "What's the big idea coming to our territory? You got a death wish."

 _Our…? I guess we have come across a gang territory._ "I'm sorry," I reply as I want to avoid combat as much as possible. "We're chasing after a guy who enters inside of that building. Now if you excuse us—Hey!"

The biker guy still stands in our way. "What guy? There's no guy in our building. You must have been confused." He's smiling and I could tell that things are going to get ugly. "Seems like we're going to teach you girls a lesson. Come out, everyone!"

Suddenly, four more biker guys show up and surrounds us. There's no way we can handle them on our own. As I think that our hope of success is bleak, five ropes come out of nowhere and starts to wrap around the biker guys' arms. Everyone is shock to see that as we look to where the ropes are coming from. What I see made me happy; the owners of those ropes are the Enforcers and one of my subordinate with the blue bandanna.

One of the biker guys asked, "Who the hell are you?"

Kalin replies with a smirk, "We are the Enforcers! And in case you don't know about us, we're going to take this territory!"

"Boss!" the blue bandanna subordinate calls out to me. "Hurry and get that guy! The Enforcers and I are going to hold them off!"

I nod my head with a smile. "Thanks guys! Let's go, Jasmine!" We make a run for it as we enter the building.

The biker guy that is standing in front tries to stop us, but Kalin pulls him away. "I don't think so! All of you guys are going to deal with us!"

* * *

I hear a loud and raging Duel going on outside. However, it's best to not see what's going and focus more on finding Gordon. There are two doors and the stairs have been block by a large debris. There could be a fifty percent chance that Gordon is in of these doors, but I'm afraid that if we open one of them, it would give him a chance to run away. While I'm thinking, Jasmine immediately opens the door to our right.

"Jasmine! There's no need to rush in—!"

"I found Gordon," she said as she points at the inside of the door.

I check and she is right. There's Gordon staring at the wall as if he's admiring it. I see it in his hands are the junk parts he stole from Jasmine. But I believe that he's waiting for the opportunity to leave.

He turns around and he is shock to see us standing in front of the door. "How did you get pass the guards?!"

"Return what you stole!" Jasmine angrily replies. "My friend needs those parts!"

I crack my knuckles to intimidate Gordon. It works as Gordon starts sweating.

He then makes an offer as he brings out a Duel Disk with a deck inside from a box next to him. "How's about this? Let's settle this matter in a Duel. If you win, I will return this bag. However, if you lose, then I'm not giving it back. Deal?"

"Deal!" she answers as she pulls out her gun, which surprises me. However, that gun transforms into a Duel Disk that she puts on her left arm and that surprises me even more. "Let's do this! Get your game on!"


	6. Family

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have original characters.

Chapter 6: Family

"What kind of Duel Disk is this?" I ask as I examined Jasmine's Duel Disk.

Jasmine chuckles when she sees me examining her Duel Disk in an excited manner. "Have you not seen a Crash Style Duel Disk? These are the Duel Disks we used back in Crash Town. It's a Duel Disk that we can carry without have it attach to our arms all the time."

The idea to have a gun to transform into a Duel Disk. Whoever comes up with that is a genius because I don't like carrying it around my arms or in a duffle bag. But I have a terrible feeling that this kind of Duel Disk won't get pass certain guidelines for traveling.

"Can we get started on this Duel?" Gordon asks and I could tell that he doesn't like being ignore.

"I'm sorry," Jasmine apologizes as the two Duelists draw their cards and the Duel begins.

Jasmine's Life Points: 4000

Gordon's Life Points: 4000

Jasmine starts off the Duel as she draws a card. "I set down a monster and I end my turn by throwing down a facedown!" Two cards appear in front of her.

Gordon draws a card. "Going on the defense on the first turn, huh. I summon Alligator's Sword in attack mode!" A humanoid lizard warrior wielding a sword appears in front of me.

Alligator's Sword: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 1500 DEF: 1200

He orders his Alligator's Sword to attack the facedown monster card. The humanoid lizard slashes at the card and it reveals to be Marshmallon. It's a small, pink marshmallow-like monster with an upside-down happy face.

Marshmallon: Level 3, Light

ATK: 300 DEF: 500

"Marshmallon's special ability is that he couldn't be destroyed in battle," Jasmine explains, "Also, since your attack reveals him, you lose 1000 of your life points!" Marshmallon jumps at Gordon and gnaws at his arm, which made him lose his life points.

Gordon's Life Points: 4000 – 1000 = 3000

Marshmallon jumps back to Jasmine's side of the field. Gordon isn't happy that he didn't notice that sort of trick. I couldn't help but smirk at his displeasure. Gordon ends his turn by placing two cards facedown and they appear behind the Alligator's Sword.

She tips her hat with a smile on her face and she draws a card from her deck. "I activate the spell card, Heavy Storm! This spell card destroys all spell/trap card on the field!"

A huge storm blows in and destroys all the facedown cards in the field before disappearing. That storm was so strong that I saw Jasmine trying to hold onto her hat so that it doesn't get blown away. It's amazing how realistic the effects are with technology this advance.

"Next I removed from play my Heavy Storm card to special summon Spell Striker from my hand!" A small warrior in blue armor and wearing a red cape appears next to Marshmallon. That warrior wields a twig-like staff in his hand and he has a sword in its sheath.

Spell Striker: Level 3, Earth

ATK: 600 DEF: 200

"I sacrifice my two monsters to summon the Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" A big black dragon with red eyes replace Jasmine's monsters. The dragon glares at the Alligator's Sword as the lizard warrior backs away.

Red-Eyes Black Dragon: Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000

Jasmine orders her dragon to attack the lizard warrior. Red-Eyes responded by firing his black fire at the warrior, burning that humanoid lizard to death.

Gordon's Life Points: 3000 – 900 = 2100

She scratches her nose with a smug look on her face. "You aren't so tough compare to the goons back home. I end my turn with just that."

"I'm going to wipe that smug of yours," he said as he draws his card. "I set down a monster and I end my turn." A card appears in front of him.

"Where that big talk, huh?" Jasmine draws a card from her deck. "Red-Eyes! Attack that monster!" The black dragon fires a bullet of black fire at the hidden monster. The monster reveals to be Morphing Jar; it's a jar with a face inside.

Morphing Jar: Level 2, Earth

ATK: 700 DEF: 500

Gordon snickers. "Good job! You activate Morphing Jar's flip effect! Now we discard all of the cards in our hands and redraw five new cards!" And they did just that.

This tactic does not amuse jasmine. "I was expecting some shocking trap monster that would destroy my Red-Eyes, but no, it was just a way to get new cards. I end my turn by throwing down a facedown!" A card appears behind her black dragon.

It's now Gordon's turn and for some reason, he's not drawing a card. He is laughing. "During my draw phase, I activate Flame Tiger's special ability from my grave! If I have no monsters on my side of the field, and instead of doing my draw phase, I can get to special summon him! Wake up, Flame Tiger!" A pillar of flame appears in front of him as if we're seeing a volcano erupted. The pillar dies down and a tiger made of fire appears.

Flame Tiger: Level 4, Fire

ATK: 1800 DEF: 0

"Now I sacrifice Flame Tiger to summon Zaborg the Thunder Monarch!" Flame Tiger have been replaced by a big robotic warrior that conducts electricity. It is as if his appearance resembles a warrior from a post-apocalyptic future.

Zaborg the Thunder Monarch: Level 5, Light

ATK: 2400 DEF: 1000

He also explains that when Zaborg is summoned, he can destroy one monster on the field. The monster he picks is the Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Zaborg shoots a lightning bolt from his hand at the dragon and killing it, leaving Jasmine open for a direct attack. Gordon does so, but Jasmine reveals her trap card called Fairy Box. Fairy Box is a permanent trap card and it's a bit of a gamble because it depends on the coin flip; if she calls it right, the monster's attack points drop down to zero for the remainder of battle, but if she calls it wrong, the monster's attack points won't drop. Another thing to note is during her Standby phase, Jasmine needs to pay 500 of her life points to keep it or destroys it.

A monster hand appears over Jasmine's head through a portal. The hand holds a coin and he flips it. Jasmine calls out tails and the coin drops on the floor, revealing its side. It's tails and the Thunder Monarch's attack points drops to zero and Jasmine didn't receive any damage. Gordon gritted his teeth as he ends his turn.

Now it's Jasmine's turn as she draws a card. During her Standby phase, she decides to pay 500 of her life points to keep Fairy Box.

Jasmine's Life Points: 4000 – 500 = 3500

"I summon Alexandrite Dragon to have some fun!" A dragon appears and his scales shine like a jewel. The dragon roars during the summon.

Alexandrite Dragon: Level 4, Light

ATK: 2000 DEF: 100

"Next I removed from play my Red-Eyes Black Dragon to summon Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon from my hand!" A black metallic dragon that looks like the Red-Eyes Black Dragon appears next to the Alexandrite Dragon.

Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon: Level 10, Darkness

ATK: 2800 DEF: 2400

"Red-Eyes!" she calls out. "Attack Zaborg with your Dark Flare Bullet!" The metallic dragon fires a magma-colored bullet at Gordon's monster, which ended up killing it.

Gordon's Life Points: 2100 – 400 = 1700

"Game over, Gordon!" She points at him as if she's firing a gun. "Alexandrite Dragon! Finish him off!" Alexandrite Dragon breathes jewel-colored fire at Gordon.

However, Gordon discards a card before the fire reaches him. "I discard Kuriboh from my hand to drop the damage I am about to receive down to zero!" A small creature of brown fur appears and jumps into the fire, sacrificing itself to protect Gordon.

Jasmine find this amusing as she giggles. "I thought you're going to be easy, but you manage to survive for now."

I'm starting to hate Jasmine's cockiness as I reprimand her by yanking her ear. "There's a thing about being cocky, Jasmine. Don't underestimate your opponent no matter what. Also, have you forgotten why you're Dueling Gordon?"

"Ow! Ow! Ow! That hurts, Koko! Of course, I haven't forgotten! I'm Dueling to get the parts back!"

I let go of her ear and she felt the stinging pain I left on her ear. Her expression shows both pain and displeasure as she tries to sooth the pain of her ear.

"I end my turn by throwing down a facedown card," she said as a card appears next to Fairy Box.

Gordon draws a card and he immediately activates the quick-play spell card, Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Fairy Box. A cyclone appears underneath Fairy Box and destroys it. Then he activates another spell card called Mind Control to take control of the Alexandrite Dragon. Then he sacrifices the dragon to summon another Zaborg and uses his special ability to destroy the Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon, leaving her wide open again. He orders his minion to do a direct attack at Jasmine, but I notice that this cowgirl keeps her cool as she reveals her facedown card.

"I activate the trap card, Dimension Wall," she said, "instead of me taking the damage, you take the damage instead!"

A portal open in front of Jasmine and Zaborg's lightning went inside that portal. Then another portal open above Gordon's head. When he looks up, a bolt of lightning hits him and took away his remaining life points. He falls on the ground afterwards.

Gordon's Life Points: 1700 – 2400 = 0

Jasmine makes her hand to look like a gun and she points her finger at Gordon. "I always hit my mark. Bang!" I saw her gesturing her arm movement as if she's firing an imaginary bullet at Gordon with a wink and a smile.

"Is that supposed to be a catchphrase?" I ask as soon as the holograms disappear.

Jasmine looks embarrass as she scratches the back of her head. She giggles and replies, "I thought it was cool for someone to end the Duel with a catchphrase. So, what do you think? Is it cool?"

"I don't know," I shrug with what I just said. "But right now, let's get your parts back."

When Gordon got up and saw us standing in front of him as if we're going to beat him up, he immediately apologizes and hands over the junk parts. I thought that it's kind of sudden for him to give up so soon as it got me thinking that he's planning to do the same trick again. I grab him by the collar, but he quickly wusses out and he promise that there's no trick involved here.

"I'm a man of my word," Gordon nervously responses, "Now would you please let me go?"

I sigh as I couldn't stand seeing his pitiful face. I let him go and we watch him scurrying away out the door. As soon as he is gone, Jasmine quickly hugs me with a happy smile on her face. Why is she happy?

"I'm happy because I finally got Toru's parts back! I also want to thank you for helping me in my time of need!"

 _Even though you got those parts back on your own._ "By the way," I spoke to get her attention, "those parts you're holding are fake. The dealer rips you off."

When I told her the truth, she immediately drops the bag and I can hear the junk parts being broken by the fall. She makes a grim look and said, "I can't believe it… Then what's the point of my Duel…"

I made a nervous chuckle. "Again… welcome to Satellite."

"Now I don't know if I should like you or hate you…" She becomes depress and I quickly try my best to cheer her up.

An idea struck me. "I'll make it up to you. I'll get your money back and give you the parts that you needed."

"How…?" she groans as she looks up to me.

That does cross my mind, but I do remember about Yusei and his mechanical talent. "I know a guy who can help with parts department! In fact, he's outside! Let's go!" I grab Jasmine's arm and drag her out of the room.

* * *

When we got out of the building, we notice that only the Enforcers, minus Jack, and my subordinate with the blue bandanna are still here. I ask Kalin where Jack is and he told me that he left since the goons that he Dueled aren't much of a challenge. Then I thank everyone for their help and they all get embarrass as Crow explains why they're here. Apparently, the reason they're here because one of my subordinates, who isn't wearing a blue bandanna, is worried about me and quickly get Kalin and the others for their help. I'm grateful to know that I have friends worrying about me. By the way, I did a short introduction between Jasmine and my friends.

"Yusei!" I called him out to get his attention. "Jasmine is looking for certain parts for her friend's Duel Runner. She has this list on which parts her friend needed." I nudge Jasmine to give him the list and she complies. "I was thinking that I should make the parts, but I have plans to get Jasmine's money back."

"So, you want me to make these parts?" Yusei ask as he looks at the list.

I nod my head as my response to his question. "It could really help me since we're not sure when her grandpa would call her and take her back home. If she goes back home without these parts, I'm not sure her friend would be happy about it."

"You make it sound like Toru is going to hate me!" Jasmine yells as if she's shock to hear. "Toru is my friend and I know him pretty well that he won't hate me just because of one mistake. Believe me, I did many things to him and he quickly forgave for them."

"What kind of things you've done to him that he forgave you for?" I ask out of curiosity.

"I once drop a sign on top of his head and he forgave me for that. Then there's that one time when I accidentally drop his toolbox in a well. There's also that time at last year's Halloween when I filled his trick-or-treat bag with gummy insects and he got so scared that he fell and hit his head on a table."

A moment of silence fills the air after hearing those things from her. "Okay…" I spoke with my eyes rolled. "So Yusei, can you make those parts?"

Yusei nods his head. "I can make them, but I'll make them better. I'm going back to Martha's place to make them now and I'll be sure to give them to you before you leave." We see Yusei leave the area with the list in hand.

Then I order my subordinate to take Jasmine to the doctor's place because I figure that Jasmine may be hungry right now. Jasmine agrees since she is hungry and she follows my subordinate and I also told him to get the doctor and bring him to the dealer's store. I ask Kalin and Crow to come with me to the dealer's store where Jasmine and I bought the junk parts from. The boys think that they're going with me so that they can teach him a lesson, but I have other plans for them.

* * *

We arrive at the dealer's store and I can see Kalin and Crow are itching for a fight. However, I stop the boys and told them to wait out at the entrance of the store so that the dealer won't escape. They obviously refused with my suggestion.

"Kalin," I said as I point at him. "Have you forgotten what happened to Gary yesterday? You saw what he looks like after I'm done talking with him, right?"

Kalin twitch when I made him remember that scene. "Let's leave this one to Kokoro," he nervously said as he pushes Crow back.

"Are you sure?" Crow asks Kalin. "Aren't you worried about her going alone?"

Then he retorts, "I'm more worried about the dealer's life…" He switches his attention towards me. "Just promise me that you'll be safe."

"I'll be fine," I nonchalantly said, "just be sure that the dealer doesn't escape." I went inside the store on my own.

"Welcome to my—wait… you're that girl from earlier." The dealer greeted me, but he recognizes me as he becomes a bit suspicious.

I put on a charm to make him to lower his guard. "I just came back because I remember that I saw this tool that I wanted. I didn't bring any money with me at that time, but I came back to buy it."

"Oh, really!" His face slackens into a smile. "So, what kind of a tool that you want to buy?"

I look at the tool section and take out a screwdriver from the shelves. I show it to the dealer and said, "This screwdriver looks like it can switch its tip."

"Yeah, it does! The extra tips are inside the container that acts as the screwdriver's handle. Is that the tool you wanted?"

"Maybe… but I'm more interested at this wrench! It looks so cool! This mini blowtorch looks useful as well! It's hard to decide!" I'm acting like a ditzy girl during this whole talk and that makes him to lower his guard down even more.

"Well… how's about I give you a discount for all those three tools? How much do you have?"

"But I want to make sure if these tools are working," I said with a smile on my face as I look at the tools. I know that the blowtorch isn't going to work and the screwdriver's tip looks sharp enough to pierce through skin. I slowly turned to look at the dealer. "Can you help me check if these tools are working properly?"

"Huh?" the dealer gasps as he is confused what I'm asking.

I walk up to him with a smile and screwdriver in hand. The dealer starts sweating as I drew closer.

* * *

Ten minutes later, I got out of the store with Jasmine's money in hand. I look at where Kalin and Crow are waiting and I notice they're shaken. I figure that it must be from the dealer's scream of pain and I couldn't blame them to be a bit scared. They later got out of their shaken state as they approach me and ask me if I'm okay. I told them that I am okay as I giggled with a bloodied hand raise over to my cheek and they are shock to see my hand.

"I'm starting to wonder who's the real man here," I said as I feel disappointed by the two boys' reaction. Then I notice the doctor coming up to us and I called out to him. "I'm glad that you came."

"I came because I got your message," he replies, "it's not have been a week yet and you already got yourself another victim. So, where is he?"

I point at the store. "He's inside there… probably bleeding with a few bruises."

"You're savage," Crow comments in a nervous tone. "Remind me not to get on your bad side."

As soon as we saw the doctor went inside the store, Kalin asks, "Does this happen often?" He must be talking about the injured victims that I made.

I shook my head. "No way! That only happens towards the people that I hate. Well, before the doctor shows up, I just let my subordinates to take care of the scared tactics. But since the doctor is here, I did most of the scared tactics in a very physical way."

We then leave the area as soon as the doctor is finish patching up the dealer. During this whole walk, I notice that Kalin and Crow are nervous to walk near me. It's not like I'm going to hurt them, so I wonder why they're nervous.

* * *

We arrive at the doctor's place and we see Jasmine playing around with the kids. It seems like they're playing Cops and Robbers and Jasmine is the cop due to her handgun-like Duel Disk. When she notices our arrival, she immediately hugs me in a cheerful manner as she greeted.

"Your attitude quickly changes!" I exclaimed as I try to slip out of her hug.

"Well, I can't stay mad at you forever!" she replies. I show her the money and she lets go of me so she can grab it. "No way! I can't believe it, Koko! How did you get the refund?"

When she asks me that, Crow and Kalin twitch and sweat in fear. Looking at their reaction has made me laugh a little. "It's a secret," I said with a wink, which made her to ask me more.

Then Yusei shows up with a bag in hand and an old man as the children leaves the building. I look at the old man and he has gray hair mullet and gray mustache. He also wears red cowboy outfit with a brown vest, a hoister that holds a gun that is like Jasmine's Duel Disk, and a brown cowboy hat.

"Grandpa!" Jasmine gasps. "What are you doing here?"

Her grandpa explains, "I came looking for you. I've asked around and the people around here told me that they saw you here. I'm done with my job here, so we're going back home."

"But Grandpa…! I didn't get the parts Toru need! I'm not going until I get them!"

"Which I have," said Yusei as he hands her the bag and that surprises her. "I've made the parts better than the parts in the list that you've given me. Your friend is going to be happy with the results."

Jasmine becomes extremely delighted as she hugs Yusei. I saw Yusei's face being red as if he's being embarrass by Jasmine's sudden hug. I ignore them for a bit and I start to have a conversation with Jasmine's Grandpa.

The old man sighs. "I'm sorry for my Granddaughter's behavior. She can be a bit of handful. My name is Klaus, nice to meet you."

Then the boys introduce themselves before I can say anything. After they're done with their introduction, I said my introduction. "My name is Kokoro Fernandez, likewise."

"Kokoro…" Klaus spoke as if he's remembering something. "Oh, I remember you! You're Kizuna's daughter! I see that you've grown up quite a bit."

 _Kizuna…!_ I thought in a gasp. "That's my mom's name!" I yelled. "Do you know my mom? Where is she?"

"Koko!" Jasmine calls out to me. "I think you need to calm down. Grandpa can't answer your questions if you keep yelling like that."

Klaus chuckles to see Jasmine trying to reprimand me for my behavior. "That's okay, Jasmine. But I'm surprise to see that you've met your cousin of all places."

"Cousin…?" Jasmine and I gasp as we look at each other.

"Yes," Klaus replies, "though you two are distant relatives and I'm sort of Kizuna's uncle."

"Yay! We're cousins!" Jasmine immediately hugs me and rubs her face against mine's as if she's a playful cat.

I'm happy for her affection, but I want to continue the topic. "I'm glad to know that you guys are my relatives, but I really want to know where my mom is!"

Klaus sighs as he explains, "Your mom came to my pub the day before we left for Satellite. I remember that she came for a drink before leaving again since she doesn't want to cause too much trouble in the town."

"Wow…" I heard Kalin spoke. "I didn't know Kokoro has a parent who is still alive."

Crow nods his head in agreement. "Yeah… And I thought that she was an orphan just like us."

Then Yusei added, "Not only that, she also has relatives who are living outside of this place."

"Hey! Even I'm shock about that!" I shouted. "But I'm glad to hear that my mother is okay. I hope I can see her again." _So, I can beat her to submission!_ I keep that thought to myself as I made a pleasant smile.

"I know!" Jasmine raises her hand with an excited look on her face. "Grandpa, let's take Koko back home! If she stays with us, she'll meet her mom the next time she visits!"

Klaus crosses his arms and shook his head. "We can't do that, Jasmine."

"Why not?!" she pouts when she heard that.

"Kizuna told me specifically that I shouldn't take her daughter outside of Satellite. She wants her daughter to get out of Satellite on her own."

"That's not fair! I want to see the reunion between mama and daughter with heartfelt tears!"

 _Didn't I tell you that I'm going to Duel my mother by the time I see her?_ I put on a gentle smile as I said, "It's okay, Jasmine. I thank you for the offer, but I don't want to burden you because of me."

"What do you mean?"

"It's because of Sector Security. If they discover that I, a resident from Satellite, escapes into New Domino City, they would arrest us. And I don't want to cause any trouble to you and your Grandpa." My argument sounds good since I pointed out about Sector Security, which made Jasmine to become troubled by that thought. I can see on her face that she's having mixed feelings.

Klaus places his hand over her shoulders and said, "Don't worry about her. I'm sure you two can hang out again someday in the future, but right now we have to go home."

Jasmine sadly nods her head. "Fine… Goodbye, Koko. I hope we can see each other again."

"Of course, we can! We're cousins after all!" We hug each other one last time and she and Klaus leaves the area. Then I glanced back at Kalin, Yusei, and Crow who are looking at me and I know what they're thinking. "I bet you're wondering about that whole conversation, am I right?"

"Well," Crow is the first to respond, "yeah, actually… I mean you got a family outside of Satellite, so we're wondering if you're going to leave."

I scratch the back of my head. "I'm actually planning to leave as soon as I'm done with my Duel Runner," I said as I decided to be honest with them. "But I will keep my promise to Duel one of you guys as soon as you're done beating all of the gangs in Satellite. I didn't mean to keep that a secret; I'm just scared that you guys would hate me for it."

"Are you that stupid?" Kalin asks and I feel offended that he is calling me an idiot. "We're friends after all! We're glad that you're honest with us! In fact, Yusei is also planning to leave Satellite like you."

"Really?" I look at Yusei with a surprised expression.

Yusei nods his head. "I'm planning to go to New Domino City to give hope for my friends living here. I want to show to everyone that even a resident from Satellite can even reach the top like any Duelist in the world."

"That's an amazing reason, Yusei!" I couldn't believe that he has such a good reason to leave Satellite. "And here I was planning to leave this place in search for my mother, but maybe do a little side-event to help you with that."

After we're done talking for a few short minutes, we parted ways. Kalin told me that he's setting up a plan for their takeover of the last territory belonging to Anti-Security, a tough gang I've heard about. Crow decided to play around with the children in my territory. Yusei went back to work on his Duel Runner. As for me, I went back to my hideout and work on my Duel Runner. Though I'm happy that I know more about my family tree and my friends and the fact that Satellite is one step closer to be in peace because of the Enforcers' involvement.


	7. Enforcer Duel – Crow Hogan

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have original characters.

Chapter 7: Enforcer Duel – Crow Hogan

A week after meeting Jasmine Church, I have finish making my Duel Runner. Well, to be truthful, my subordinates did help me on that since one of them kind of eavesdrop on my conversation with my cousin. I was happy that they help me and accepted my choice of leaving Satellite to find my mom. They even give me a navy blue leather jacket that has white shoulder pads to replace my vest and I really like it. The only reason why they did all of this for me is because they want repay the debt that they owe. Even though I think it's a dumb excuse to use, I appreciate their support. They even got the information when the pipeline's maintenance is going to happen, which is three weeks from now, so I can use that time to do some time trials to prepare for that event.

I'm in my hideout talking to Misty via video phone from my computer and telling her the events that have transpired. Hearing my story has made her awe and we started a conversation.

"I am shock to hear that you have a cousin," said Misty, "I want to meet her! You should introduce us when you have the time."

My response is a chuckle. "I'll be sure to do that, but I don't want to bother her."

I see her crossing her arms in the small screen with a puzzled expression. "I'm surprise that you choose not to go with her. If I were in your shoes, I would definitely jump in the offer to leave Satellite."

"That is true, but… I don't want to cause her any trouble. I know that there's Sector Security patrolling the docks and if by chance they spot me, I would be going to jail along with her and her grandpa."

"What about me?" she asks as if she's pointing something out. "Have you forgotten that you decided to come live with me after you sneak through the pipeline?"

"That's different! If Sector Security knows about the pipeline, then they would've put in some heavy security in that place!"

"Then what about documentations? If people found out that you're from Satellite, they'll throw back there or jail at least. It's also hard to get jobs here because not much people from Satellite can get even a part time job."

"Why do you bring those things up?" I puff up my cheeks out of frustration. But she does bring up some good points that I didn't thought about.

I look at her face and I saw that she's making an expression that she's satisfied. "I bring those up because I want to see your reaction. That reaction you made is so cute."

 _Is this woman a sadist?_ I thought with an eyebrow twitch. _Though with her looks, I could definitely imagine her as one._ This kind of conversation reminds me of how we first met, but I don't want to go into memory lane. I change the topic very quickly by saying, "I'm going to Duel against the Enforcers today."

Misty comments, "I'm amazed that you change the subject already. But Dueling against four boys must be tough for you."

The Enforcers have defeated the last gang three days ago and I have to keep my promise. However, we decided that it's not good to have them to fight each other to find the one who would Duel me and they all just Duel me one at a time. We think it's a good decision and to make it interesting, I would be using the deck that I used against Felix.

"It's better that I want everyone to be happy," I said, "I just don't want them to leave with bitter memories. Dueling is fun after all!"

A smile forms on Misty's lips. "I agree. I wish many professional Duelists have that same mindset as yours. All they care about is being famous rather than having fun."

 _She must have experience talking to them through her work,_ I thought. "I don't want to become a professional Duelist or a famous one, I just want to accomplish my goal."

"You mean defeating your mother. I don't understand why can't you just talk to her, but you have your reasons and I don't want to force you. So how's the boys?"

I tilted my head. "They're okay, but Yusei got rope burns on his arm from yesterday's escapade. He's fine, but he doesn't tell me how he got those rope burns. Not even Kalin and the others would tell me."

"I guess they don't want to worry their 'sister' if she knew what happen," she said with a smile.

But the fact that Misty labels me as a "sister" to the Enforcers is kind of embarrassing. "Do I really worry about them that much? I guess that makes sense since I think of my friends as family."

"Really? Then what do you think of me as a family member?"

"I think of you as an older sister that I could look up to." I notice the time on my computer that it's almost noon. "I'm sorry, Misty, but I have to hang up right up now. I have to keep my promise with my 'brothers'."

Misty waves her goodbye and then we hang up the video phone. Before I leave my hideout, I took one look at my Duel Runner with a smile. My Duel Runner is blue and it has a build for speed. Looking at it made me remember the hard work that my subordinates and I did and it made me wonder for the future after I leave Satellite. All I can do is smile into thinking that there's going to be a bright future for all of my friends here and leave the hideout with my Duel Disk and deck in hand.

* * *

I arrive at an empty basketball court near my territory. I saw Yusei, Crow, and Jack talking to each other about something that I couldn't hear. They notice me coming as I ask them where Kalin is.

Jack answers, "He got some stuff to do, but he'll show up soon."

We later discuss the order who's going to Duel me. We start with Crow, then Jack, then Kalin, and then Yusei. I ask why Yusei choose to be the last one to Duel me and he told me that Kalin would just be impatient to wait. I kind of agree with him, but that sort of contradicts of him not showing up right now.

Before we start the Duel, Yusei asks, "Have you got the information for the pipeline's maintenance?" I told them about that information.

"So that means this will be the last day all of us will Duel you," said Crow with a smile. "Send us a postcard when you settle in New Domino City."

I nod my head. "I'll be sure to do that! Also, Yusei!" I point at him to catch his attention. "I'll be waiting for you in New Domino City! So you better hurry up and finish your Duel Runner!"

Yusei nods his head with a smile on his face. We both shake hands in agreement.

Crow and I stand and face each other at opposite ends of the basketball court. We activate our Duel Disks and draw the five cards at the top of our decks.

"Kokoro," Crow calls out to me. "Let's make this Duel memorable for all of us." I nod my head in agreement and the Duel commences.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000

Crow's Life Points: 4000

Crow starts the Duel by drawing a card from his deck. "I set down a monster in defense mode and I end my turn by placing a facedown card," he said as two cards appear in front of him.

Then I draw a card from my deck. "I discard one card from my hand to special summon The Tricky!" The Tricky appears as he juggles around his throwing knives as if he's entertaining his audience.

The Tricky: Level 5, Wind

ATK: 2000 DEF: 1200

"Next I bring out Silent Magician to join him!" Silent Magician appears next to The Tricky.

Silent Magician Level 4: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000

I order The Tricky to attack the facedown monster. The Tricky throws his knives at the facedown card and it reveals to be a black bird that is shape like a silver shield.

Blackwing – Mistral the Silver Shield: Level 2, Dark

ATK: 100 DEF: 1800

The knives have killed the black bird, leaving Crow wide open for a direct attack from Silent Magician. I order Silent Magician to attack Crow directly as she fires off a blue beam from her staff to him. But suddenly, the silver shield shaped black bird appears in-between the beam and Crow and it absorbs the attack like a real shield before disappearing again.

I don't know what just happen as Crow explains, "That's Blackwing – Mistral the Silver Shield's ability. If he has been sent to the graveyard by any kind of destruction on the field, it can reduce the next battle damage to zero this turn. In other words, your direct attack is completely wasted!"

"Not bad," I comment with a smile. "I end my turn by placing a facedown card." A card appears behind my two monsters.

Crow draws a card from his deck. His draw activates Silent Magician's ability. Whenever he draws a card from his deck, whether it's the Drawing Phase or special effects, Silent Magician gains a Counter. She also gains 500 attack points for every Counter she accumulates.

Silent Magician's Counter: 1

ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

He continues his turn by saying, "I summon Blackwing – Bora the Spear in attack mode!" A humanoid black bird whose head is a bit light red wielding a large spiraling spear appears in front of Crow.

Blackwing – Bora the Spear: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 1700 DEF: 800

"Next I summon Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind! Since I have another 'Blackwing' monster on the field, I can special summon this little guy to join in the fun!" It's a small black bird that has a green head appears next to Bora the Spear.

Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind: Level 3, Dark

ATK: 1300 DEF: 400

"I activate Gale the Whirlwind's special ability! Once per turn, I can target one face-up monster on the field and decrease its attack and defense points by half during the turn I use this ability! My target is The Tricky!" Gale the Whirlwind blows in a strong gust of wind that my jester-like magician is having trouble to stay his ground as his points decreases.

The Tricky: ATK: 2000/2 = 1000 DEF: 1200/2 = 600

He orders Gale the Whirlwind to attack my weakened monster. Gale flaps his wings to create a strong gust storm at The Tricky and the wind destroys monster.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000 – 300 = 3700

Then he orders Bora the Spear to attack Silent Magician. Bora charges with his spear at my small magician, but I activate my facedown trap card. The trap card reveals to be Kunai with Chains. It's a special trap card that gives me three choices; this trap acts like an equip card that gives a single monster 500 boost in attack points, it can switch the attacking monster into its defense position, or do both at the same time. I pick the first choice and Silent Magician is equipped with the Kunai with Chains and she gains the power boost.

Silent Magician: ATK: 1500 + 500 = 2000

Silent Magician wraps Bora the Spear with her chains to stop him from moving as she swings behind the black bird. She points her staff at the bird's back and fires a blue lightning bolt at the bird, thus killing him.

Crow's Life Points: 4000 – 300 = 3700

"Nice counter!" Crow smirks. "As expected from you."

"I'm not the type to not see that one coming," I said with a smile. _Truth be told, I didn't expect him to summon two monsters at once. Is this the power of a Blackwings' deck?_

"I end my turn. Kokoro, you're up!"

I draw a card from my deck. "I summon Tuned Magician!" A male magician who wears a yellow-green outfit appears next to Silent Magician.

Tuned Magician: Level 4, Wind

ATK: 1800 DEF: 1600

"Tuned Magician attacks your Gale the Whirlwind!" I see Tuned Magician twirling his staff and he stops as he points his staff at the black bird. He fires a green energy beam from his staff at the bird; however, Crow discards one card from his hand.

"I activate Blackwing – Kalut the Moon Shadow's special ability! If my 'Blackwing' monster attacks or is being attacked, I can discard him from my hand to give that 'Blackwing' monster a 1400 boost in power until the end of the turn!"

Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind: ATK: 1300 + 1400 = 2700

Gale dodges Tuned Magician's attack and he flies towards his attacker. The black bird strikes down my Tuned Magician with his wings, thus killing the magician.

Kokoro's Life Points: 3700 – 900 = 2800

Seeing that my life points is lower than Crow's, I smile with excitement. My blood is boiling in anticipation of how exciting this Duel is going to take. "Not bad, Crow. I throw down a facedown and end my turn." A card appears behind Silent Magician.

Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind: ATK: 2700 – 1400 = 1300

Crow draws a card from his deck. Silent Magician's ability activates from that phase.

Silent Magician's Counter: 2

ATK: 2000 + 500 = 2500

"I reveal my trap card, Blackback! This trap allows to revive any 'Blackwing' monster that has 2000 or less attack points! So I'm bringing back Bora the Spear!" Bora the Spear reappears next to Gale the Whirlwind and that bird isn't too happy. "Now I activate Gale the Whirlwind's special ability! I decrease your Silent Magician's attack points by half!"

Silent Magician: ATK: 2500/2 = 1250 DEF: 1000/2 = 500

Crow orders Bora to attack Silent Magician; however, I reveal my facedown card. It's a trap card called Magical Arm Shield; this trap only works when my opponent declares an attack and has at least two monsters on the field. This trap allows me to take control a monster that isn't attacking yet and make that monster the target of that declared attack. I still take damage if that monster's attack points are low, but what can you do. I use Magical Arm Shield to take control of Gale the Whirlwind and Bora stabs that small bird, thus killing it.

Kokoro's Life Points: 2800 – 400 = 2400

"To think Crow manage to deal that much damage to her," Yusei comments, "but Kokoro predicted Crow's actions and counters them."

Then Jack spoke, "I think she puts more emphasis on protecting her Silent Magician than saving those for something big. However, Crow focuses more on swarming than summoning something stronger!"

Crow retorts, "No one is like you, Jack! This is my style and I will beat her with it!" He ends his turn and my Silent Magician is back to normal.

Silent Magician: ATK: 1250 x 2 = 2500 DEF: 500 x 2 = 1000

 _This is fun!_ I thought as the smile on my face never change. I draw a card from my deck and I said, "I activate the spell card, Level Up! By ignoring my "Level" monster's summoning conditions, I can raise their level! So now my Silent Magician Level 4 is now Silent Magician Level 8!" Silent Magician grows into an adult version of herself and she looks powerful despite the fact that she loses the Kunai with Chains. But I do wonder what would Crow do against her.

Silent Magician Level 8: Level 8, Light

ATK: 3500 DEF: 1000

I see Yusei and Crow's shocked reaction on their faces, though Jack doesn't show any kind of reaction. He must have known that I'm going to raise my Silent Magician's level. I order Silent Magician to attack Bora the Spear. She flies straight at the bird, dodges the spear that is about to pierce her, and places the tip of her staff at the waist and electrified him until he is nothing but ashes.

Crow's Life Points: 3700 – 1800 = 1900

"I place a facedown card and I end my turn." A card appears behind my Silent Magician. "Crow… do you have any monsters that can beat my Silent Magician?"

"Kokoro…" Silent Magician spoke to me and since she's a Duel Monster Spirit, only I can hear her speak. "Don't get cocky. Crow may have another trick up his sleeve."

 _I don't need you to tell me that!_

Crow didn't draw his card from his deck and he started laughing. I wonder why he is laughing. He said, "I will show you how I'm going to beat her! Get ready! Draw!" He draws a card from his deck. "I activate the spell card, Pot of Greed, so I can draw two new cards from my deck! I activate Blackwing – Breeze the Zephyr's special ability! If I add him into my hand from a card effect, then I can special summon! Come on out, Breeze!" A small humanoid bird that has the color similar to fire appears in front of Crow.

 _Wait… That bird has the name "Blackwing," yet why that bird's feathers aren't black?_

Blackwing – Breeze the Zephyr: Level 3, Dark

ATK: 1100 DEF: 300

"Next I summon Blackwing – Calima the Haze!" A purple bird appears next to Breeze the Zephyr, but that bird's color could be black because that bird is covered by this purple mist.

Blackwing – Calima the Haze: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 600 DEF: 1800

"I tuned Calima the Haze with Breeze the Zephyr to synchro-summon Blackwing – Armor Master!" Breeze transforms into three green rings and Calima transforms into four balls of light inside the rings. A beam of light shoots out of the rings and into the sky. Descending from the sky is a humanoid black bird, but the feathers looks hardened like armor.

Blackwing – Armor Master: Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2500 DEF: 1500

Looking at this monster, I have to say it looks impressive. However, comparing his attack points to Silent Magician's attack points, that monster is pretty weak. Why would Crow summon it?

"Hey, Kokoro!" Crow calls out to me. "Why do you start playing Duel Monsters?"

"Huh?" I tilt my head when I gasp that. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Crow explains to me that when he was really young before he met Yusei and Jack, he wanted to become a professional Duelist and leave Satellite just like me and Yusei. However, he wasn't smart during his childhood and he was an orphan with no friends. He was pretty much all alone and without anyone to be there for him during that young age, he didn't know the feeling of anyone caring for him. That was until he picks up some Duel Monster cards and some kids befriended and taught him how to play the card game. It's because of this game, Crow improved his reading, spelling, and arithmetic skills and found some friends who accepted him. Duel Monsters pretty much saved him and he treasured the bonds that he made from the game, which he used it when he was taking care of the orphaned children.

"At first I thought being a professional Duelist would make me happy," he said, "but after my experience, I thought I should use Duel Monsters to help the children here. So I have to ask you that question. Why do you start playing Duel Monsters?"

"I started playing Duel Monsters because of my mother," I answer with a small smile. "She always play Duel Monsters with me when I was young and that made me happy…" I stop my talking as I sadly remember about my mom leaving me without a single word from her. My story can't compare to Crow's story since he was alone from the beginning and no one was there to guide him from knowing what's right and wrong. "Let's stop talking and continue to Duel, please…" I said in a very sad tone.

Crow nods his head and since he can see my sad face, he understands that he shouldn't be asking. He orders his Armor Master to attack Silent Magician. I think it's a stupid move since Silent Magician's attack points are higher than Armor Master's. Armor Master tries to punch Silent Magician, but she counters by blocking that punch with her staff that is charged with magical energy. However, that counter didn't destroy Armor Master as they separate from each other. Why isn't Armor Master dead? Also, why does that monster left a feather on Silent Magician's staff?

"That is Armor Master's special ability!" Crow exclaims. "Armor Master can't be destroyed in battle and I don't take damage from any attacks! Also, if he fails to destroy a monster in battle, he left behind a Wedge Counter on that monster!"

Silent Magician's Wedge Counter: 1

"What does this Wedge Counter do?" I ask in a surprised tone.

"Nothing," he bluntly answers. "Well, not for now that is… You'll see when my turn is up. I end my turn."

Now I'm worried. I don't know what a Wedge Counter does. I shrug this worry off as I draw a card from my deck. "I activate the continuous spell card, Mirage of Nightmare! This card allows me to draw four new cards from my deck and on my next Standby Phase, I have to discard the same number of cards that I drew!" As I draw the four cards, I heard Winged Kuriboh's voice. I look at the cards and I see that he's in my hand. "I summon Winged Kuriboh in defense mode and I end my turn!" Winged Kuriboh appears next to Silent Magician as she is happy to see him here.

Winged Kuriboh: Level 1, Light

ATK: 300 DEF: 200

Crow smirks when he sees Winged Kuriboh. "I don't know what you're planning, but I will end this Duel right now! Draw!" He draws a card from his deck. "I activate Armor Master's other ability! By removing all of the Wedge Counters on your Silent Magician, all her attack and defense points drop to zero until the end of the turn!" I see the feather disappear from Silent Magician's staff as she kneels on the ground in a weakened state and that shocks me.

Silent Magician's Wedge Counter: 1 – 1 = 0

ATK: 3500 – 3500 = 0 DEF: 1000 – 1000 = 0

"Armor Master! Attack Kokoro's Silent Magician and end this Duel!"

"Not so fast!" I exclaimed. "I discard two cards from my hand so I can activate the facedown spell card, Transcendent Wings! This spell card allows my Winged Kuriboh to evolve into Winged Kuriboh Level 10!" Winged Kuriboh starts changing; his wings become larger, his claws become large and shaper, he has a golden serpent on his body like some kind of armor, and he looks more vicious.

Winged Kuriboh Level 10: Level 10, Light

ATK: 300 DEF: 200

Crow and his friends are shock to see this kind of development, but Crow thinks that doesn't change what's going to happen. "So what?! My Armor Master is still going to attack your weakened Silent Magician!" Armor Master flies up in the air and does an aerial dive attack at Silent Magician, who is still kneeling on the ground.

But I make sure to end this Duel with the help of Winged Kuriboh. "I activate Winged Kuriboh's special ability! During your Battle Phase, I can sacrifice him to destroy all your monsters on the field! And when that happens, you take damage equal to all of your destroyed monsters' attack points!"

"What!?" Crow gasps in shock.

Winged Kuriboh is glowing bright in white light. He fires that light at Armor Master, which stops his attack. Armor Master twitches in pain until his armor starts cracking and explode. The dust clouds from that explosion hits Crow and I win the Duel. I happily thank Winged Kuriboh for his help and I mentally declare him the MVP of this Duel. I heard Silent Magician's jealous rants coming through my deck, but I ignore them just for fun.

Crow's Life Points: 1900 – 2500 = 0


	8. Enforcer Duel – Jack Atlas

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have original characters.

Chapter 8: Enforcer Duel – Jack Atlas

Crow is lying on the ground as the holograms from our Duel disappears. I can imagine him to be upset that he loses the Duel, but I saw a huge smile on his face. Is he satisfied with the results?

"That was an awesome Duel, Kokoro!" he shouted. "Let's Duel again someday!"

"Sure!" I nod my head with a smile.

Crow got up and he walks away. Jack walks pass Crow on the way with his Duel Disk and deck. "It's my turn!" Jack glares at me and I see fire in his eyes. "Kokoro! This is my declaration that I will be the one to defeat you!"

I reshuffle my deck and I chuckle at Jack's declaration. "I like the attitude, but can you back up that declaration in this Duel?" I smirk when I ask him that question.

Jack responds with a smirk as well as we both draw five cards and we activated our Duel Disks. The Duel commences.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000

Jack's Life Points: 4000

I allow Jack to go first as he draws his card. "I summon Power Breaker in attack mode!" A bronze humanoid machine appears in front of him. That robot has blades attach to his wrist and it wears a tattered blue skirt and tattered yellow cape.

Power Breaker: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 1900 DEF: 0

"Starting off strong, I see," I comment with a smile and a whistle.

"I place a facedown card and I end my turn. Kokoro! Show me what you got!" A card appears behind Power Breaker. And seeing that Jack is bursting a fighting aura so early in the game has made me want to extinguish that aura.

I draw a card from my deck. "Sure, Jack… Here I go! I discard one card from hand to activate the spell card, Cost Down! This spell card lowers the levels of the monster cards in my hand by two until the end of the turn. Thanks to this spell card, I can summon the Dark Magician Girl!" Dark Magician Girl appears as she playfully winks at my opponent.

Dark Magician Girl: Level 6, Dark

ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700

I order Dark Magician Girl to attack Power Breaker. She fires a black magical bullet out of her staff and that bullet hits her target, causing an explosion that destroys it.

Jack's Life Points: 4000 – 100 = 3900

Jack is unfazed by this predicament as he just said, "Not bad."

 _Playing cool, huh…_ I smile for making that remark in my head. "I place one card facedown and I end my turn." A card appears behind Dark Magician Girl.

Jack draws a card from his deck. "I activate Vice Dragon's special ability in my hand! If I have no monsters on the field and you have a monster, I can special summon him with his original attack and defense points becomes halved." A purple dragon appears and it has a head of a small t-rex and the wings of pterodactyl.

Vice Dragon: Level 5, Dark

ATK: 2000/2 = 1000 DEF: 2400/2 = 1200

"I sacrifice Vice Dragon to summon Strong Wind Dragon!" Vice Dragon has been immediately replaced by a large green dragon that is generating wind all over its body.

Strong Wind Dragon: Level 6, Wind

ATK: 2400 DEF: 1000

"Strong Wind Dragon's special ability activates! If I tribute a dragon monster to summon him, his attack points increase by half of that dragon's original attack points!" The green dragon roars into the air as he generates a stronger wind than before.

Strong Wind Dragon: ATK: 2400 + 1000 = 3400

Jack orders his Strong Wind Dragon to attack Dark Magician Girl. The green dragon sucks in the wind that generates into his mouth. The dragon breathes an air bullet that is flying straight into Dark Magician Girl.

However, I reveal my facedown card. "I activate the trap card, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow! This trap negates your dragon's attack!" A scarecrow made from junk appears in front of Dark Magician Girl.

Jack smirks. "I knew you're going to save your Dark Magician Girl. I reveal my trap card, Dark Bribe! This trap negates your trap card's effect and destroys it, but with a price of giving you a card to draw from your deck." I see my Scrap-Iron Scarecrow turns to rust and then crumbles into nothingness, which shocks me and Dark Magician Girl. My female magician got hit by an air bullet and dies from it.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000 – 1400 = 2600

Seeing that my life points have gone down that much, I lightly smack my face to pump my energy up. "You got me there," I said, "but that doesn't mean that you can defeat me that easy!"

Jack scoffs as he said, "I end my turn."

I draw a card from my deck. "I activate the spell card, Card of Sanctity! This spell allows us to keep drawing until we both have six cards in our hands!" Which we did. "Next I use the spell card, Monster Reborn to bring back the Dark Magician Girl from my graveyard and onto the field!"

A pink magic circle appears on the ground in front of me. Coming out of that circle is Dark Magician Girl as she appears with a cheerful smile. Seeing her happy made me happy.

"I activate another spell card called Polymerization! I fuse together the Dark Magician Girl from the field and the White-Horned Dragon from my hand to become the Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight!" Dark Magician Girl's clothing changes into a blue female knight's armor with her staff being replace by a sword. She jumps into the air and a big red dragon with a white horn appears underneath her. She lands on top of the dragon's back as if she's riding it like a horse.

Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight: Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2600 DEF: 1700

I see that Crow and Yusei are at awe from seeing Dark Magician Girl like that, but Jack shows no reaction whatsoever. Why is he so confident?

"I activate Dark Magician Girl's special ability! Once per turn, by sending one card from my hand to my graveyard, I can destroy one face-up card on the field! So, I'm destroying your Strong Wind Dragon!"

Dark Magician Girl charges her sword with magical energy and she fires that energy like a laser that hits the green dragon. The Dark Magician Girl's magical sword kills the dragon. Then I order Dark Magician Girl to do a direct attack on Jack's life points. She flies up in the air and she circles around to do a diving strike, but then a fiendish-looking metronome/pendulum monster appears. When her sword touches the monster, it creates a barrier that pushes Dark Magician Girl and her dragon away.

Then Jack said, "I activate Battle Fader's special ability! If you declare a direct attack, I can special summon him and he negates your attack and end your Battle Phase!"

Battle Fader: Level 1, Dark

ATK: 0 DEF: 0

I gritted my teeth and I said, "I place a facedown card and I end my turn." A card appears behind Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight.

Jack draws a card from his deck. "I place two facedown cards and I end my turn." Two cards appear behind Battle Fader.

 _That was quick… what is he planning?_ I draw a card from my deck. "I discard one card from my hand to activate Dark Magician Girl's special ability! Say goodbye to your Battle Fader!"

Dark Magician Girl raises her sword up in the air and she charges magical energy into the sword. Then I notice dark clouds gathering over our head. I'm sure the weather report didn't say anything about rain today.

That is until Jack said, "I discard one card from my hand to activate the trap card, Divine Wrath! When you activate your Dark Magician Girl's special ability, this trap will negate her ability and destroys her!"

I gasped as I didn't think he pulled out that kind of trap card. An orange lightning bolt comes out of the dark clouds and it strikes onto Dark Magician Girl's sword. She felt the pain of that lightning strike and she and the dragon dies from it. Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight is gone just like that. With only card in my hand and a facedown card left, I have no choice but to end my turn.

"You're pretty tough, Jack," I said, "You're making this Duel really exciting!"

Jack responds with a cool smile as he draws a card from his deck. "I summon Blizzard Dragon!" A blue dragon that is about two-feet taller than me appears as he breathes out an icy breath.

Blizzard Dragon: Level 4, Water

ATK: 1800 DEF: 1000

He orders his dragon to do a direct attack. Blizzard Dragon fires his icy breath at me and I got hit. However, my life points didn't go down.

"I reveal my facedown card, Defense Draw! This trap reduces the damage to zero and I get to draw one card. Sorry, Jack, better luck next time!"

Jack ends his turn with a scowl on his face. I guess he hates how much I counter his assault.

 _I need to draw a good card,_ I thought as I look at my deck. _I need a card that would turn this Duel around!_ I draw a card from my deck and I look at the card with a smile on my face. "I place one card facedown and I end my turn." A card appears in front of me.

"At least you have some fight in you," he said as he draws a card from his deck. "I summon Extra Veiler!" A male matador appears next to Battle Fader. He wields a large red cape and a fencing sword.

Extra Veiler: Level 2, Light

ATK: 600 DEF: 200

"I tuned Battle Fader and Blizzard Dragon with Extra Veiler to synchro-summon a being of great power!" Extra Veiler transforms into two green rings and Battle Fader and Blizzard Dragon transform into five balls of light inside the rings. "Rise your infernal power! I synchro-summon Chaos King Archfiend!" A beam of light shoots out of the rings and into the air. Descending from the sky is a slim demon with a yellow mask, purple smoke for hair, and bone arms with fire wings.

Chaos King Archfiend: Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2600 DEF: 2600

"Jack isn't holding back, is he?" Yusei asks Crow.

Crow nods his head. "But Kokoro has a face that says she would never give up. Man, Kalin is totally missing this Duel!"

"This Duel is over! Chaos King Archfiend attack Kokoro and end this Duel!"

Chaos King conjures up a ball of fire in his bony hands. He throws the fireball at me and it's coming onto me fast.

"I reveal my facedown card, Enchanted Javelin! This trap card increases my life points equal to your Chaos King's attack points!" A javelin with an angel design appears in front of the fireball and it takes the hit. It halts the fireball and it increases my life points through magical means.

Kokoro's Life Points: 2600 + 2600 = 5200

However, the javelin couldn't contain the fireball and it breaks into ashes. The fireball hits me and my life points went back to where I originally have before I activate the trap card.

Kokoro's Life Points: 5200 – 2600 = 2600

Crow and Yusei are both surprise at this development. "Man," Crow spoke, "that girl just doesn't give up that easily. Seeing this Duel makes me want to have a rematch right now."

I said with a smirk on my face, "I activate Gorz's special ability from my hand! If I have no cards on the field and I took damage, I can special summon him! Come on out, Gorz!" A man in black armor appears on the field. His hair is spiky and red, he wears a red cape, and he wields a large broadsword.

Gorz the Emissary of Darkness: Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2700 DEF: 2500

"Next I activate Gorz's other ability! Since I got damage through battle, I can summon an Emissary of Darkness Token and her attack and defense are the same as that battle damage!" A woman in greyish armor appears next to Gorz. She wears a red dress skirt and wields a single-edged sword.

Emissary of Darkness Token: Level 7, Light

ATK: 2600 DEF: 2600

Seeing that I save myself from losing this Duel and summoning two monsters on this turn, Jack gritted his teeth. "I end my turn! On my next turn, Kokoro, you are finish!"

"Are you sure about that?" I ask and that made Jack to raise an eyebrow. I draw a card from my deck and when I look at it, I couldn't believe my luck. "I pay 800 of my life points to activate the spell card, Brain Control! This spell allows me to take control of your Chaos King until the end of my turn!"

Jack, Crow, and Yusei gasp in shock as demonic hands appear over my head. The hands stretch and grabs the Chaos King and places him next to the Emissary of Darkness Token. They couldn't believe that I made such a comeback in this turn.

 _I see it now…!_ I smile at that thought. "This is my victory!" I exclaimed. "Emissary of Darkness Token and Chaos King Archfiend! Attack Jack and end this Duel!"

The two selected monsters combined their attacks. The Emissary swings her sword in a horizontal slash with a run and she hits Jack in the stomach, while the Chaos King summons a huge fireball and throws it in time with the sword swing. I won the Duel thanks to the two monsters.

Jack's Life Points: 3900 – 5200 = 0

The holograms disappear and Jack and I both fell onto the ground. I'm starting to feel the sweat on my body and the simultaneous pounding of my head and chest. This Duel has top geared my brain and that pounding proves it. It has been a long time since I have this feeling and the only one who could pull it off is my mom. But to think that Jack can create that same feeling like what my mom did, then I can see him as a worthy rival and I haven't even use my real deck.

I laugh out loudly. I couldn't contain this feeling that I finally found a worthy rival just after I defeated Crow. I think my laughing caught my friends' attention.

"What's so funny?" Jack asks. "You just want to laugh at my defeat, huh."

I shook my head with a smile. "No way! You just made my day, Jack! You made me to go all out despite that I'm not using my main deck! I'm quite satisfied with this Duel! We should Duel again sometime!"

Hearing my evaluation of the Duel has made Jack to smile and nod his head. We both got up and shake hands as we exchange a fiery look to each other.

Then I notice something. "Where's Kalin?" We all look around and see that Kalin isn't coming at all. "That guy…! Today is the promise day that we Duel and he still hasn't shown up."

"I agree," said Crow, "this isn't like him. I wonder if the whole disbanding thing got to him."

"Disbanding…?" I look at Crow when I ask him that.

Crow explains to me that after they defeated the last gang, they were talking about disbanding the Enforcers. With the gangs defeated by them, though I'm their "final boss", they decided to disband the Enforcers. It would be pointless to be a gang where everything is peaceful. My gang are mostly defenders, so we won't be offending anyone to make a gang against us. But seeing the friendship between the four boys, I don't think even disbanding the gang would ruin their bond.

"Since Kalin isn't here," I spoke as I look at Yusei. "That means that you have to Duel me. I won't be satisfied if I just simply wait for my opponent."

"BOSS!" I heard someone calling me, which totally kills my mood. "WE NEED YOUR HELP! PLEASE!"

We all turned to see that it's the subordinate with the marooned scarf running towards us. I ask, "What is it? Can't you see I'm in the middle of a Duel with the three of the four Enforcers?"

He catches his breath before he can answer. "It's Kalin, Boss…"

When he mentions Kalin's name, I have this bad feeling in my stomach. Did something happen to Kalin? Or did Kalin get involve with something? I allow my subordinate to tell us what happen.

"Kalin… is attacking the children…"

Time freezes for me. Hearing that Kalin is attacking the children mentally shocks me. _Why would Kalin be attacking the children?_ Is what I'm thinking. I know Kalin isn't the type of person to be doing that, but this uneasy feeling… I'm not sure how I should feel about it.

"WHAT IS KALIN THINKING?!" Crow's yelling snaps me out of that time freeze. "I'M GOING TO GIVE HIM A PIECE OF MY MIND!" I see Crow asking my subordinate to take him to Kalin and they run to that location.

"Crow! Wait!" Yusei chases after Crow with a worried look on his face.

Then I saw Jack chasing after them. I guess even he's worried about the situation. Even without any words being said to me, I know that I can't ignore this problem. I clench my hands tightly as I suppress the urge to be angry. He must have his reasons and I want to hear it from his mouth. I follow the others so I can see Kalin face-to-face.


	9. Broken

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the names of both the characters and the cards. I do have original characters. By the way, this chapter has no Dueling whatsoever.

Chapter 9: Broken

We have arrived at the place where the children and the doctor lived. The scene that we see has shock all of us. Three of my subordinates are holding Kalin back and the kids are crying while the doctor is protecting them. Kalin looks like he's struggling against my subordinates like he some wild animal. Before I can step in, Crow rushes in and he punches Kalin in the face. The force of that punch is enough to get Kalin to be free from my subordinates' grip and landed on the ground on his back.

"Ow! What the hell was that for, Crow?!" Kalin angrily shouts.

"I like to ask you the same thing!" Crow angrily retorts. "What do you think you're gaining by doing this?"

Yusei and Jack backs up Crow, while I go check on the kids. I ask, "Doctor, are these kids okay?" The doctor nods his head in response. "What happen?"

The doctor explains that Kalin challenges one of the kids into a Duel. The Duel starts off as fun, but Kalin becomes irritable and he orders the children to fight with everything they got. He becomes ruthless to the children and the subordinates try their best to hold him down, but he has proven to be quite difficult. Hearing this story, I just don't want to believe it and yet the proof is in the children's behavior. They're scared and they're crying. I clench my hands into fists and I felt the anger boiling inside me.

"Weeding out the weaklings, that's what!" Kalin answers Crow's question. "And if anyone's not rolling with us, they're our enemies! How else are we going to conquer all of Satellite?"

"But this is our territory!" one of my subordinates' yell at Kalin. "And we're supposed to be allies!"

Crow tries to hold back his anger. "You think we can by starting to hurt children! Is that what you're saying?"

"Yeah! We do!" Kalin firmly stares at Crow. "We don't need ANY wannabe Duelists around here, no matter how old they are!"

His words echo in our ears and we all became silent. I can't believe he said that. We promise to be allies until we Duel as their last opponent and he already broke my trust. I try to hold back my tears and my anger, but they're leaking out. My Duel Disk activates and I turn to Kalin.

Crow spoke, "I thought Dueling was about the ability to have fun whenever you want, no matter who you are. What gives you the right to take that away from any of us?!"

"What?!" Kalin gasps.

"I'm done. I'm through with this team." Crow turns his back to Kalin and he walks up to the doctor and the children.

"Crow…" I heard Yusei's voice muttering his name.

Kalin is furious at this development. "Hey! I thought we were a team! Crow! You're just going to turn your back on your friends like that?!"

Crow didn't say anything to Kalin. In fact, he acts like he doesn't acknowledge Kalin's existence. I look at the silent Jack and I have this feeling that I know what's going to happen next. He silently walks away, leaving the area. None of us try to stop him.

"Jack!" Kalin yells. "Hey! Jack! Crow!" He turns to Yusei. "Yusei, we're a team, right? We're friends, right?!"

Yusei is hesitant to answer his question. He becomes silent because of Kalin's recent behavior.

Kalin is getting impatient. "Come on, say something!"

I'm starting to feel the sensation of my power activating just like last time. My hair and my clothes move as if wind is blowing into them. Everyone is surprise to see what I'm doing.

"Kokoro…!" Yusei says my name.

Then one of my subordinates' yell, "Quick! Get inside the building!"

"What's going on?" the doctor asks, but they don't have time to explain as everyone went inside.

I glare at Kalin and he steps back a little. "Get out," I said and Kalin didn't seem to hear it. "Get out… GET OUT OF MY TERRITORY!" I draw a card from my deck and I immediately summon it via my Duel Disk. Appearing in front of me is the White-Horned Dragon.

Seeing my red dragon surprise everyone as my dragon roars so loudly that it shatters a few windows. Kalin falls on the ground in fear. The dragon looks at Kalin and it seems that my dragon is ready to attack him if I order it to.

"LEAVE NOW!" I yelled. "HURRY AND LEAVE BEFORE MY ANGER WANTS ME TO KILL YOU!"

Hearing my warning, Kalin quickly leaves the area. I turn and glare at Yusei and he understands that he must leave too. The people hiding in the building came out and when I turned to see them, the children quickly hide behind the doctor and Crow. It couldn't be help that there's a realistic dragon right next to me. I deactivate my power via calming down and the dragon disappears.

"I'm sorry that you guys have to see that," I said in a solemn tone. "I'm going back to my hideout. You guys… be sure to take care of them." I walk away, leaving the area.

* * *

I'm lying on the bed of my hideout. I sadly stared at the ceiling as my mind keeps repeating the memory of Kalin's behavior. Repeating that scene has boiled my mood into anger, but I try to hold it back so I cannot let my powers to go crazy. It still grinds my gears as I furiously punch my pillow that leaves a hole in it.

"Um…" I heard a voice and I turn to see the Dark Magician Girl in her spirit form.

"Odd," I said, "usually it's the Silent Magician to be the one talking to me. Let me guess, you guys, the other Duel Monsters, are concern for my reaction at Kalin's recent behavior. I'm fine, you guys don't need to worry."

"Say that to your pillow." She points at the pillow that has a hole from my fist. I quickly changed the subject by asking her why Silent Magician isn't the one talking to me. "Her… um… she's calming down from the fact that you declare Winged Kuriboh as the MVP of the Duel instead of her. Wait! Don't change the subject!"

I groan when she realizes my trick. "I don't want a lecture about my behavior or how I should deal with the situation. If I have time to get a lecture, I would use that time to release my stress by—"

"Punching your mattress, punching a wall, punching your door until it breaks again, or punching some random nearby drug dealer until he starts crying for his mommy." Dark Magician Girl has listed all the possible things that I would do to release my stress. My lower jaw is hanging open in shock from that.

"I can do more things than punching, you know! And… wow…! I just realize that I have some issues. Go figure."

"A little too late to realize that now, huh." Dark Magician Girl is being snarky. "Listen, Kokoro," she speaks to me in a calm manner, "you're a young adult and you need to act like one. You can't just be trigger by using your power to scare people; you need to talk to them in a nice manner."

Then I retort, "I should act like a young adult! What about Kalin, huh? He's older than me and he doesn't even act his age! He acted ruthlessly to the children and he say all those things about the children!" I lower my head and I hug my legs in a sit-up fetal position. "Why does Kalin act like that?"

"That's a good question," said another voice, which made the Dark Magician Girl to disappear from my field of vision. The owner of that voice is the doctor and he enters my hideout with a smile. "The guys told me about your powers. I'm quite surprise to see it happening in front of me. You're quite a special girl, Kokoro."

I made a wry smile. "I'm sorry that you have to see that. How are the kids?"

"They're fine," he answers, "They are a little shaken from your dragon's roar, but they're fine." He looked at my sad face and he sighs. "You're worried about Kalin, aren't you?"

I silently turn my back to him in response. I'm staring at the wall as I choose not to look at him.

He speaks in a mature manner, "You cannot look at me, but you can at least hear me out. I know what Kalin say and did was wrong, but many of us don't want you to feel guilty for your response. It's natural, I think. But let's think from Kalin's perspective and to find out his reason for his acting."

"Why should we think about it?" I scoffed. "We already heard his reason! Isn't that proof enough?!"

"Do you really think that? Do you honestly believe that's Kalin speaking to us honestly? I've seen people like him and let me tell you, he's not being honest. Though that's probably my assumption."

"That's not very assuring."

He sighs. "Let's just think like Kalin. Kalin really cares about his friends and he loves Dueling, including a great challenge. That's pretty much what the Enforcers have in common. However, if the challenges are gone, what would the gang do afterwards? Would they be bored and go their separate ways? That is most likely the case. Kalin is probably afraid of losing his friends if there's nothing that keeps them together."

My eyes became wide out of the revelation that the doctor has made. _I didn't think about that possibility_ , I thought as I slowly turn my head to him. "What makes you think that was the case?"

"I'm an objectivist," he answers, "I see all of the problems from all sides before jumping to conclusion. And I could assume some things that some people may have not think about."

 _Is it just like me when I choose not to blame anyone for Satellite's conditions?_ Now I'm feeling guilty. I have forgotten that I don't blame anyone if I think about the factors. "I should apologize to Kalin. I didn't even think about those factors." Then the doctor suddenly pets my head, which made me feel embarrass. "I'm not a little kid! So, stop petting me!"

The doctor laughs and he walks out of the hideout. Talking to him has made the terrible feeling in my heart to go away. I decided to wait for Kalin to come to my territory because after the whole stunt I did, I doubt I would find Kalin. Also, it gives him a good chance to cool off and reflect his actions. Until then, I took my Duel Runner to the nearest subway tunnel and do some time trials.

* * *

A week has pass and no word from Kalin. He hasn't return to my territory to apologize for what he did. This worries me because I'm not sure if he has gotten himself in trouble. As for the other Enforcers, they're doing fine. Crow is helping me to take care of the children and thanks to his help, the children aren't afraid of me anymore; in fact, they keep asking me to summon other Duel Monsters for them to play with. I don't know what Jack has been doing, despite my information network, but he has come visit my place to see if my subordinates have gotten any stronger. Yusei is searching for Kalin because he too worries about him and he hopes that if he finds him, he will bring him to me so we can apologize to each other.

As for me, I've been doing time trials during this one week. Each day that has pass at this point, my time has gotten better than previous ones. If this keeps up, I would be fast enough to get through the pipeline before the maintenance is over.

 _Keep going_ , I thought to myself as I revved my Duel Runner's engine to the max. I'm inside the abandoned subway doing a time trial and I'm riding pass the debris and other obstacles as I go fast. _Keep going! Faster! Faster! FASTER!_

I reach the end of the lap around the tunnel. I know it's the end because I have someone to check on my time. That someone is another subordinate and he wears a pink jacket, though he keeps calling his jacket's color to be "lightish red".

"Good job, Boss," he said as he walks up to me. "You beat yesterday's time by ten seconds shorter. Keep this up and you'll be able to reach pass seven minutes in no time."

I remove my blue helmet and I thank him for telling me that. _I'm still roughly between the numbers of seven and eight, huh. I need to make some slight adjustments in my Duel Runner's performance._

As I'm doing the adjustments, my pink jacket subordinate asks, "Boss, is it okay to throw you a party at the day before you leave?"

I scratch my head. "I don't understand why you ask me that. I'm okay with parties, but please don't play any loud music like last year. We're lucky that Sector Security give us a warning instead of taking one of us to jail."

"Don't worry about that," he said with a wink and a smile, "The music that I'm going to play is going to be low and smooth for everyone to enjoy."

A few minutes after doing some adjustments, another subordinate came in the subway. He told me that Crow wants to speak to him at the unfinished bridge at the coastal part of Satellite. I remember that bridge is called the Daedalus Bridge and that's all of information I got on my own. Then I order my subordinates to take my equipment and Duel Runner back to my hideout, while I go meet Crow. The two subordinates follow that order and I left the subway tunnel.

* * *

I arrive at Daedalus Bridge. It's a huge bridge made from wood and junk that reach above the ocean. Though the bridge is unfinished as it only reaches up to a yard at least over the ocean. I see this bridge is pointing at New Domino City at the far end. Seeing the city in front of this bridge looks like it's taunting the people living here. I find Crow standing next to the bridge, staring at New Domino City.

"Kokoro…" He turns to me.

"Yeah… so what do you want to talk to me about?"

"Nothing much," he answers with a shrug, "I thought you should enjoy being outside once in a while. After all, you spend most of your time inside a dark subway tunnel." He turns to look at the bridge and he made a sad face. "I don't think I told you this yet… The story about the man who tried to liberate Satellite."

 _There's a man who tried to liberate Satellite…?_ I've become interested into hearing this story.

Crow tells the story. "A long time ago, that guy came riding into town on a very strange-looking Duel Runner. He would come to this exact spot and just stare off into the distance towards the city. Every single day, without fail. He'd just come and look. But one day, he stopped coming. He found a purpose in life… He knew he had to build a bridge to connect Satellite with the city… Daedalus Bridge."

 _So, that's the origin story of this bridge…_ I didn't know about this story. Or someone did tell me and I just forgot about it.

"Everybody said it couldn't be done and that he was crazy for even thinking about it. But he never gave up…"

 _That man has some tenacity if he chose not to give up like that!_

"Those people who made fun of him at first gradually started thinking maybe, maybe he would finish it…"

 _Hard work does change people!_ I made smile at that thought.

"For the residents of Satellite who merely recycle the trash coming from the city each day… For those people with no bright future, the bridge become their symbol of hope."

I can see that from looking at the bridge and the direction it is pointing. I wonder why this bridge isn't finish, but deep down, I know that reason and Crow ends up telling it.

"Unfortunately, some folks showed up that didn't like the idea of this new bridge being built. Sector Securities. Construction was stopped and the person who started it all hit the top of Securities' most wanted list. Everybody gave up on the idea and said it was doomed from the start. They figured he'd get arrested."  
 _Another reason why Sector Security is being hated in this place! I swear those guys have the biggest track record of not being liked at all!_ I'm starting to feel angry from listening at this part of the story.

"Eventually, Sector Securities did catch up to him. He had two options… one was to turn himself in and spend his life in a cell… or he could turn himself into a living legend."

I'm being suck into the story as I gulp in anticipation of wanting to know this unknown man's fate. "What did he choose?" I ask.

Crow smiles as he points at the bridge and said, "He chose to become a legend."

A light break free from the dark clouds at the end of the bridge. It's almost like movie magic because that timing couldn't be more perfect. My eyes sparkle as I imagine someone flying into the sky.

"A legend not bound by common sense of any kind of powers… That's why he jumped. Nobody knows what happened to him after that… but I have so much respect for him and what he tried to do…" Crow becomes silent now.

"What an amazing story," I said with a smile, "but why do you tell me this story?"  
He answers, "He's actually another reason why I started Dueling in the first place. But now…"

So, he told me another story of why he started to play Duel Monsters. I do have this weird feeling that Crow has another reason, but I guess he only told me this is because he misses being with his pals, the Enforcers. He must have really miss those days.

Then we heard someone calling Crow's name. We turn to see that it's Lily and she's running up to us. "Oh, Crow, thank goodness you're here!" We ask he what's going on and she answers, "Something really bad! Kalin is fighting against Sector Security all by himself!"

"WHAT?!" He and I gasp in shock.

 _Kalin is fighting Sector Security! No way! Even I know that he's not that stupid and reckless to do something like that!_ I started to pray to God that Kalin is safe.

"Lily! Where's Kalin?" Crow ask her.

"In the building that used to be the hideout for Team Black n' Blue!"

I remember correctly that specific hideout is a tall building somewhere at the west side of where we are. Imagining Kalin fighting Sector Security at that place has made a weight down in my heart.

Crow furiously stomps the ground. "That idiot! What is he thinking? Kokoro! I'm going to contact Yusei and Jack so we can help Kalin!"

"What about me?" I ask in a worried tone.

"You go and take Lily back to Martha!"

I shook my head. "No way! I can help you! There's no way you four can take all those officers on your own!"

"Kokoro! You should listen! Kalin is the _leader_ of the Enforcers and he made that mess! And it's up to the Enforcers to clean up the that we made! We can't drag you into this!"

Looking at Crow's eyes, I can tell that he isn't going to change his mind. I sigh and said, "Fine, I'll take her back to Martha. Promise me that you guys would be safe, okay?"

Crow lightly punches on my left shoulder and he smiles at me. "Don't worry, we'll be fine! Once we get Kalin out of that jam, we'll be sure to bring him back so you two can apologize!"

Hearing his words made me happy and I watch him leave. Then I suddenly, I saw something that removes my happiness. I never thought that I see that thing again after so long and now it picks this time to show up. The thing that I'm seeing is the Reaper of Despair.

The Reaper of Despair is a floating skeleton with no legs wielding a scythe like a stereotypical depiction of the Grim Reaper should wield. He wears a purple hooded cloak that covers his body and iron chains dangling all over his body. The Reaper of Despair isn't a Duel Monster Spirit, but a spirit that I met six years ago, who took away someone who I see as a father figure. I see him following Crow and he slightly turns to me so I can see his glowing red eyes. His bony mouth moves as if he's laughing and turn his back to me and continues following Crow. I try to call out to Crow, but seeing the Reaper's appearance has made my voice not to come out. They have vanished into the streets.

"Butterfly Lady, what's wrong?" Lily asks. "Why are you crying?"

Tears are streaming down my face. The reason I'm crying is because of the Reaper's appearance following Crow. Why is the Reaper following Crow? Am I going to lose Crow? Or is there something bigger than that? Then an image of the Enforcers dying came into my mind and more tears stream out than usual.

Lily becomes concern from seeing me cry. "Butterfly Lady, don't cry… Because if you cry, I cry as well." I see tears coming out of her eyes.

Seeing her reaction, I quickly wipe away the tears and put on a strong face regardless of my eyes being red from crying. "I'm sorry," I said, "I just got something in my eyes. I will have one of my subordinates to escort you back to Martha's." My words have perk her up and we walk back to my territory so I can hand her over to a subordinate who can escort her.

* * *

After giving a subordinate the escort mission, I went to the location where Kalin is hiding. It looks like an abandoned apartment building that is three stories tall. I didn't bring any subordinates with me because after thinking about it, I don't want them to get in trouble because of someone else's mess. I also Yusei, Jack, and Crow entering the building with the Reaper of Despair floating behind them. I quickly follow them and my appearance seems to interrupt their discussion of what they should do.

"Kokoro!" Crow exclaims. "What are you doing here? Didn't I ask you to take Lily home?"

I scratch my head and I force a smile to hide my worried expression. "I just can't simply ignore this," I said. "You guys are my friends and I really care about all of you. So, I don't mind being in trouble." I look at the Reaper of Despair and he looks at me to see the anger in my eyes, which is odd that I'm smiling with that anger.

The boys didn't seem to notice my action as Crow sighs. "Guess we're all in this. Let's split up! I'll check the basement while you guys check upstairs!"

Jack nods in response. "Also, make sure that no Sector Securities spot you! We saw a few entering this building not too long ago. It won't be long until all of the Sector Securities surround the building."

With Crow went into the basement and the rest of us went upstairs. Jack checks the second floor, while Yusei and I went on ahead. We're able to sneak pass one or two Sector Security Officers along the way. On the third floor, Yusei heard Kalin's voice through the door at the end of the hall. The door isn't lock nor been barricade, so we enter the room and we see Kalin and an unconscious Sector Security Officer in the room. We're shock, but we're also glad to see that he's okay.

Kalin turns to us and he gives us a grim look. "Oh, it's… you guys."

"What are you doing?!" Yusei asks.

"What does it look like? You know, I finally realized something… If we can defeat Sector Security, we'll really have conquered all of Satellite!" He took a step forward and he raises his hand to us. "Come on guys, join me! Let's take these guys on!"  
"You're not thinking straight!" Yusei becomes angry with that raised tone. "We can't expect to win against them all!"

Then we heard sirens coming outside. I check out the window and I see a large amount of Sector Security Officers outside.

"This is bad," I gritted my teeth when I say that. "At this rate, they would surround this whole building! We have to escape now!"

Just as I suggested that, Kalin begins to laugh maniacally. "This is perfect! We can conquer all of Satellite as quickly as possible!"

Then Jack and Crow comes into the scene with Crow saying, "Guys, what's taking so long? We have to go!"

As Crow tries to grab Kalin's arm, Kalin immediately swats his arm away. "No way, Crow! Guys! This is our chance! If we take them on now, the rest of Satellite will be ours! We can become legends to the people here!"

"Are you nuts?!" Crow yells out of anger. "There's no way we can take them on!"

"I agree," said Jack. "I may enjoy a good challenge, but even I know the odds are against us."

"Kalin," Yusei spoke, "we have to go… If you or all of us got capture by them, there's no telling what they would do."

As their conversation was going on, I've been staring at the Reaper of Despair. He has been circling around the four boys as if he's choosing his victim. The victim that he picks was Kalin as he places his ghostly scythe over his neck. The Reaper taunts at me by laughing and that laughter have made me remember about that day six years ago. I couldn't let my friends to see my reaction as I clench my right hand into a fist. That is when I notice that Kalin is looking at me.

"We can," said Kalin, "We have to use Kokoro's powers to even out the odds!" His words have shock us as he continues, "That's right! Kokoro! Summon up a monster to wipe out their forces!"

I shook my head and Jack steps in front of me. "Kalin… you're not thinking clearly. You're asking Kokoro to take out the lives of other humans. Even I know that's not a great idea."

Crow grabs Kalin by the collar and he pins him against the wall. "Kokoro is our friend! She's not a weapon! I may hate Sector Security, but I would never ask her to harm anyone!"

"Then how are going to conquer Satellite!? We're going to miss our chance if we don't take them out now!"

Seeing Kalin acting like this and the Reaper floating behind him, I couldn't help but feel my chest hurting. This isn't the Kalin that I knew; the Kalin that I knew is always fun, but this Kalin wants to harm others. What makes it worse is this whole situation; Sector Security has probably block all our exits and they're probably entering the building. The chances of our escape are dwindling fast if we're here and we're lucky that no one here is having a panic attack. We need to find a way to get Kalin to give up this whole thing and I just have an idea, which is the honest one.

I walk up to Kalin as soon as Crow lets him go. Kalin looks at me and I immediately slap him so hard that I leave a red mark on his cheek. The boys are surprise of my action and Kalin looks at me again with a confused look on his face.

My lips at first were trembling, but I manage to say, "I'm sorry."

"Kokoro… what do you mean by that?" he asks.

"I just don't want to leave with the regret of not apologizing to you," I answer as I made a small smile on my face. "But Kalin… can you tell me what happen to you? What happen to the Kalin that I knew since I first met him? You're not the Kalin that I knew! Kalin is a fun person who I see as an older brother that I love to hang out! He cares about his friends and he loves Dueling with others for fun!" Tears are streaming down my face again and I try to wipe them away, but they couldn't stop. "I don't like this Kalin at all! I WANT THE OLD KALIN BACK!" I scream that aloud and I cry like a little kid who misses their older sibling for leaving them.

Everyone is silent as they allow me to cry. That is until Crow said, "Wow, Kalin… you made her cry. You're a terrible person after all."

"Wait! Guys!" I can hear Kalin gasping those words. "Help me out here! How can I stop her from crying?"

"Idiot," Jack spoke, "just take the responsibility. It's your fault to begin with."

Kalin groans and my crying seems to lessen to sobbing. I feel a hand on my head and I look up to see Kalin's face. He said, "I'm sorry, Kokoro. I don't know what came to me. You're my friend just like the others, but I ignore your feelings for my own ambition. So, can you forgive me?"

I sniffle for a bit as I look into his eyes. I can tell that he's being honest and the Kalin that I knew is back. "I forgive you," I said and then I grab his shirt to wipe my nose.

"Kokoro!" Kalin gasps. "Why are you using my shirt to wipe your snot?!"

"You're not carrying anything like tissues or handkerchiefs, so I have to improvise!" I blew my nose onto his shirt and I let it go. I'm starting to feel a bit better and I notice that the Reaper is nowhere to be seen. Did I prevent Kalin's fate?

Then Yusei asks, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," I answer, "I'm sorry that I broke down like that."

"Don't worry." Yusei smiles. "If you hadn't done that, then we probably lose Kalin even more."

"Ugh… This feels gross…" Kalin is feeling some discomfort of having my snot on his shirt.

Jack coughs to get our attention. "I hate to remind you guys that we're currently surrounded and we're about to have Sector Securities coming to our location. We need to get out now."

Kalin took a deep breath and he looks around the room. He gasps as if he has an idea. "We have to place our bets at the building next door!"

We look at the building he is talking about. The balcony at the backside of the room, we saw the building and it seems to be close enough for all of us to escape. We took that as our escape route.

Inside the building is pretty much the same as the building we came from; abandoned with a lot debris and holes. Kalin suggested that we should split up when we exited out the building since, let's be fair here, it would be a huge risk with the Sector Security Officers outside. We all agree to it and we split up into different directions in the building, but I follow Kalin. The reason is because I'm still worried about his safety even though the Reaper of Despair hasn't made an appearance.

"Why are you following me?" Kalin asks. "We agree to split up, right?"

"Do you want me to cry again? I'm just worried about you, that's all."

Then suddenly we saw two Sector Security Officers blocking our path. They notice us as one of them shouted, "There they are! We found the targets and we're proceeding to arrest them!"

Kalin immediately picks up an empty oil drum and tosses it at the officers. It causes them to fall on their backs and we took the opportunity to run pass them. During this whole run, we keep running into other officers blocking our path of escape as if they're leading us to the front entrance of the building, which they are.

As soon we're out, we're immediately got caught by other officers who are waiting in place. Just as we're struggling to get free, we also see Yusei standing next to officers' captain. I wonder at that moment of what's going on, until Kalin angrily calls Yusei a traitor. His yell force me to look at him and I saw the Reaper of Despair again over his head. It shocks me to see him and all I do was holding my breath. I watch Kalin being taken away and I try to struggle to break free.

That is when a female Sector Security Officer stands in front of me. I couldn't tell who she is since she's wearing the Sector Security uniform and a helmet to hide her face. I glare at the woman and I tell her to let Kalin go.

The female officer moves her head to make her mouth close to my ear. She whispers, "You're going to hate me for this."

I recognize that voice, but before I can confirm it, I got kick in the stomach. The kick is so strong that it made me vomit spit and lift my feet off the ground. Then that woman punches me in the face, which knocks me into the ground. I felt my consciousness fading at this point and my eyes are closed.

* * *

The sound of rain has woken me up. The pain of being kick and punch still stings on my body. The rain even soaks my clothes and body that made this cool breezy night freezing. I notice that I'm on someone's back as if they're carrying me. That someone is Yusei Fudo. Seeing the back of his head made me wonder what happen. I took a few glances to notice that we're on the street with no Sector Security Officers around.

"You're awake," Yusei spoke and I ask him what happen. "After you were unconscious, Sector Security arrested Kalin for attacking them. Jack and Crow have been sent home by them and I ended up being the one to carry you back to your place."

"I see…" I mutter in a sad tone. "Yusei, why are you talking to their captain? Did you really sell him out?" I ask him the questions that have been lingering in my mind. I should know since I don't want to believe that Yusei would ever do that.

He explains, "I try to get myself arrested. If I acted like the scapegoat of the group by claiming that I'm the guy who attacks them, then you guys would be safe. You guys are important to me and I don't want to lose any of you. But they saw through me and arrested Kalin and Kalin hated me. It's a misunderstanding! I didn't mean for that to happen!"

"It's okay, Yusei." I gently pet his head when I say that in a soothing tone. "It's not your fault for Kalin's arrest. I don't have any words of comfort to tell you that, but I will tell you that you're a good person to care about your friends."

Yusei was silent for a moment, which made me wonder if my words are getting through to him. "Thank you," he said, "I really appreciate your words."

As Yusei continues carrying me down the rainy street, I remember about the female officer who knock me out. Her voice is familiar and I couldn't help but feel angry. That female officer is my mother, Kizuna Fernandez. Why is she dress like that? Why she knocks me out and allows Kalin to be arrested? And the most important question; why she returns to Satellite after she left me a long time ago? The more I think about these questions, the more my hatred for my mother grew.

The next day, words about Kalin's arrest have spread all over Satellite. People come to the conclusion that the gang war is finally over with the arrest and disbanding of the Enforcers. Now the Enforcers became a legend, famously or not to the residents living in Satellite. Though the only gang active is my gang, Team Butterfly, but since we're not a violent gang, no one has seen us as a threat and that's okay for me. Also, calling the Enforcers a legend has made me remember about Crow's story about the man who made the Daedalus Bridge; he is consider to be an unsung legend and I wonder if the Enforcers would be too. If only I could meet that man who made the bridge so that he can give me his thoughts on the matter.


	10. Goodbyes

Disclaimer: A complete rewrite of the original.

Chapter 10: Goodbyes

I was going to leave Satellite tomorrow and this saddened my friends and subordinates. So, we were throwing a party that I promised not too long ago in the doctor's place. Everyone was happy that for that decision, but at the same time they were sad as well. Whenever I tried to talk to them, they forced a smile upon me and I could tell that they were only doing that so I wouldn't be sad like them.

Well, enough about this gloomy stuff. I invited Yusei and Jack to the party because they were my friends and having them at the party would at least lighten the mood. Crow already got an invitation since he had been helping with the party's decoration. Yusei said that he was going to bring his friends to the party. Jack said that he would come if the food is good. By the way, Martha couldn't join because she was taking care of two sick children, but the other kids joined in the party.

I tried to send an invitation to Kalin, but Sector Security wouldn't let me see him nor allowed him to leave for one night. When I told Crow about that, he got mad but he knew that fighting Sector Security was pointless after what happened last time. I ended up agreeing with him and it was painful. It wasn't fair that I was the only one who knew what really happen.

* * *

I brought my Duel Runner to the doctor's place.

I saw it as a lively party with music playing. Some of my subordinates were talking to each other, some were Dueling tabletop style, and the children were playing the doctor's board games that he brought. When I showed them my Duel Runner, everyone was clamoring about it. The kids even asked me to give them a ride, which I told them no since I didn't have any spare helmets with me.

Then Crow entered the party and he asked, "Is that your Duel Runner, Kokoro?"

"Yeah! This is my Duel Runner! What do you think?"

"I have to say that it's blue and cool-looking. It seems like this Duel Runner focuses more on speed with a bit of handling. Are you using your Duel Runner for a race instead of Turbo Dueling?"

"The maintenance time in the pipeline is like short and my Duel Runner needs speed if I want to get through. By the way, have you heard any word from Yusei and Jack?"

"Yusei's friends are coming to your party first. He's readying his deck for a Turbo Duel against you. As for Jack, I have no idea when he's going to show up."

"I'm actually here," said Jack who was standing behind me and I jumped out of surprise.

We were shocked to see him here because he didn't tell us when he was going to show. We asked him how long he was here.

"Just this morning," he answered. "I have to see your doctor to bandage this arm up." He showed us his right arm that was bandaged.

"No way! Are you all right? How did you damage your arm?"

"Kokoro, calm down, so I can answer your question."

I thought that I must be annoying him since he was making a grouchy face, but I couldn't ignore it.

Jack explained that during his walk earlier, a debris from a building nearly fell on top of him. He did get out of the way, but he injured his arm in the process. Since he remembered about my invitation to come to the party, he went to the doctor and asked him for a free checkup.

 _Now that I think about it… the doctor has been doing a lot of checkups on my subordinates and the children for free. Great… Now I'm feeling guiltier than ever._

As I was being bothered by this sudden revelation, Crow showed Jack around the party. That kind of got my attention, but my guilt burned so much of my brain that I felt numb to respond to whatever antics those two were doing. I was just blankly staring at the ceiling for no real reason while ignoring the people who were calling me. That was until someone tapped my back and it made me jump in surprise to see a familiar person.

"Hey there, Kokoro! Thanks for inviting us to your party!"

"Rally! Don't scare me like that! I thought an unknown person is actually touching me!"

"Well, you shouldn't be standing around and just stare at nothing."

I was happy to see Rally here in my party, but I was more surprise to see the three men standing behind him. Comparing his cute appearance to those three, I was questioning Rally's real gender. I mean seriously! He looked too cute to be a boy and he was wearing a dress!

"Um, Rally," I said while scratching my cheek, "Can you introduce me to your friends?"

Rally did the introductions of the three men. The big guy was named Tank, the lanky guy with glasses was named Nervin, and the guy with the goatee was named Blitz. From just looking at them, and judging that they were friends with Rally, I could tell that they were nice guys.

"Nice to meet you! Please enjoy the party to your heart's content!"

"Thank you, Ms. Fernandez!" Blitz politely bowed his head toward me.

I watched everyone heading to the food table to get some grub. As everyone was having a good time at the party, I took a cup of juice and sat on a couch.

As I was drinking, Yusei entered the building with his white Duel Runner. Crow became the one who greeted him.

"Hey, Yusei! Is that your Duel Runner?"

"Yeah." He nodded his head in response.

Jack was just looking at the Duel Runner. I couldn't tell that he was jealous or wasn't impress from his usual expression. I really need to learn how to read his scowling-like face.

I approached Yusei and I looked at his Duel Runner. I could tell that it had speed and handling like my Duel Runner.

"Yusei… do you built this Duel Runner for the pipeline?"

He nodded his head. "Yeah, but I don't have enough practice like you."

"That's okay! You can ask my subordinates for when the pipeline's maintenance is going to happen!"

"I appreciate it, Kokoro. Thanks."

We happily shook hands. Then Rally asked if we were going to Turbo Duel and I told him that we were since Yusei owed me a Duel after the incident with Kalin and Sector Security. However, before we left the building, I told Yusei to wait for a moment because I wanted to make an announcement. I get everyone's attention as the music dies down.

I said, "Everyone, I have an important announcement! Now that the gang wars in Satellite are over, Team Butterfly is now disbanded!"

Everyone was shocked to hear my announcement. Some were confused, while others had seen this coming. They chattered to each other for a bit until I continued my announcement.

"I know you guys are upset about this, and so am I as well. But since there's peace, you guys don't need to think of this place as a haven. You guys can now go around Satellite without this constant fear of being ambush by other people. I'm happy that you guys help and I wish for all of you to stay, but there are times when we must go on our separate ways. I am going to New Domino City to find my mom… what about you guys?"

My subordinates looked at each other for a few seconds until they picked the blue bandanna subordinate to be their voice. He said, "We're planning to stay here."

"What?"

Then the maroon scarf subordinate stepped in. "Even though that the gang war is over, we still feel like we still owe you."

The blue bandanna nodded his head in agreement. "You've given us a haven for us. We're total strangers to you and you're willing to accept us. You put so much trust in us that we couldn't find the right words to describe how grateful we are."

I felt a bit embarrass from hearing all that. "I thank you all for saying those things, but you guys seriously don't owe me anything! I only did those things out of the goodness of my heart!"

"Kokoro," the doctor spoke with his arms folded over his chest. "It's no use to argue with these guys. They are your friends and your second family. Even when you're gone, we will always be here to welcome you back."

 _A second family…_ That thought echoed in my head. Hearing that from the doctor had warm my heart. "Fine. You guys do whatever you want. But promise me that you guys don't cause any trouble while I'm gone."

"Yes, Boss!" Everyone cheered out.

 _You guys don't need to call me, Boss…_ I thought as I forced a smile on my face. "Okay! Enough with the announcement and let's get on with the Turbo Duel!"

We walked out of the building as everyone became the audience. The doctor told us that we should ride around the neighborhood. If we gone farther away, we might attract some Sector Security that were patrolling far away. We start from the doctor's place and we circled around the block back to the starting line. Simple enough.

We lined our Duel Runners next to each other and place our Duel Disks into our rides. It seemed like we have the same design choices. We put our decks inside the Duel Disks and draw the top five cards and place them into our card holders.

Our friends were cheering us. I could hear Crow yelling at us to give out our all in the Duel. I noticed that Jack was just staring at us. It made me wonder if he wanted a Duel Runner.

"Kokoro!" I heard Yusei calling me. "Whoever wins, no hard feelings."

"I agree. Let's make this Turbo Duel fun!"

We turned on our Duel Runner's Speed World system and the whole world around us, except for the humans around, turned into a slightly pinkish hue color. Our Duel Runners roared loudly as we revved the engines.

"Turbo Duelists! Are you two ready?" The doctor asked and we nodded our heads in response. "Alright! 3… 2… 1… Go! Let's Turbo Duel!"

The Turbo Duel begins as we drive our Duel Runners.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000

Yusei's Life Points: 4000

Due to my time trials, I speed passed Yusei. And since I was in front, I get to go first.

I drew a card from my deck and said, "I set down a monster in defense mode and I drop down a facedown card. End turn. You're up, Yusei!" Two cards appear in front of me.

Then Yusei drew his card. "I activate the spell card, Tuning! This card allows me to add one 'Synchron' Tuner monster from my deck into my hand, but I must send the top card into the graveyard. I add Junk Synchron into my hand and I summon him into the field!"

A small robotic-looking man in orange clothing appeared next to him. His white scarf flowed into the moving air like it was hair.

Junk Synchron: Level 3, Dark

ATK: 1300 DEF: 500

"I activate Junk Synchron's ability. As soon as I summon him, I can bring back a level two or below monster from my graveyard in defense mode with its effects negated. Come on out, Speed Warrior!"

A robotic man that was taller than Junk Synchron appeared. The noticeable thing about him was the gas mask and roller skates.

Speed Warrior: Level 2, Wind

ATK: 900 DEF: 400

"Now I tuned Speed Warrior with my Junk Synchron to synchro-summon Junk Warrior! Let's rev it up!"

Junk Synchron transformed into three green rings, circling around Speed Warrior who also transformed in two balls of white light. A beam of light fired straight pass me and a robotic warrior appeared. His long, white scarf flapped in the wind, the wings on his shoulders made him to be flying, and his huge right hand looked ready for battle.

Junk Warrior: Level 5, Dark

ATK: 2300 DEF: 1300

"Go, Junk Warrior! Attack her facedown monster with Scrap-Iron Fist!"

Yusei's Junk Warrior fired up his fired up his engines and flew toward my monster. He dived with his right arm as a weapon. He punched it and the monster revealed to be Marshmallon. This pink gelatin-like monster couldn't be destroyed in battle, but if he were to be revealed in battle, Yusei would take one thousand points of direct damage.

Marshmallon: Level 3, Light

ATK: 300 DEF: 500

Yusei's Life Points: 4000 – 1000 = 3000

"I end my turn by playing a facedown card." A card appeared next to Yusei's Duel Runner.

It was my turn as I drew my card from my deck. "I discard a card from my hand to summon The Tricky in attack mode!" The Tricky appeared next to Marshmallon as he was juggling knives.

The Tricky: Level 5, Dark

ATK: 2000 DEF: 1200

"Next I summon Flamvell Guard!"

A dragon appeared in-between Marshmallon and The Tricky. It had charcoal colored scales with fire spewing out of the cracks of its body. The fire formed into a barrier surrounding the dragon.

Flamvell Guard: Level 1, Fire

ATK: 100 DEF: 2000

"I tuned The Tricky with Flamvell Guard to synchro-summon Gaia Knight, The Force of Earth! Let's ride to the next stage!"

Flamvell Guard transformed into a green ring that surrounded The Tricky who transformed into five balls of light. A beam of light fired over my head and a blue armored knight riding on horse came out. He turned to Yusei and pointed one of his two lances at him.

Gaia Knight, the Force of Earth: Level 6, Earth

ATK: 2600 DEF: 800

I ordered Gaia to attack Junk Warrior. His horse ran toward the robot warrior. It retaliated with a punch, but my knight's lance had pierce it and killed him in pieces falling on the road. And I end my turn from there.

Yusei's Life Points: 3000 – 300 = 2700

Yusei drew a card from his deck after we made a turn of a building's corner. He then started a conversation as he said, "This is my first time seeing you do a synchro-summon."

"Yeah, I know. I just thought that I will give you a good challenge than any of my other decks."

"So… am I facing your real deck?"

"That's… a… secret!" I playfully answered and I heard a small sigh coming from my opponent.

The Turbo Duel resumed as Yusei said, "I reveal my facedown card, Call of the Haunted! Now I can bring back Junk Warrior!"

The ground next to Yusei cracked open and Junk Warrior flew up in the sky. He then posed with his fist punching air.

Next, he summoned Nitro Synchron who appeared next to Junk Warrior. He looked like a small, pink nitrogen tank with arms, legs, eyes, and mouth.

Nitro Synchron: Level 2, Fire

ATK: 300 DEF: 100

He tuned Junk Warrior with Nitro Synchron to synchro-summon a monster called Nitro Warrior. After Nitro Synchron transformed into two green rings, Junk Warrior changed into five balls of light, and a beam of light was fire, Nitro Warrior flew next to Yusei. He was a green and black monster with two huge horns, two pipes at the back of his head, a rock-like body, and a rocket engine sticking out of his butt.

Nitro Warrior: Level 7, Fire

ATK: 2800 DEF: 1800

Yusei ordered his Nitro Warrior to attack Gaia. The green warrior flew in a speed of a jet and punched my knight into oblivion along with the horse. I felt a breeze from the explosion of my monster's defeat. With that, he ended his turn after placing down a facedown card that appeared behind Nitro Warrior.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000 – 200 = 3800

I smiled as I drew a card from my deck and I end my turn just like that.

Yusei was puzzled, but he drew his card. "I equipped Nitro Warrior with Fairy Meteor Crush! With this, my monster can pierce through your Marshmallon's defense! Go, Nitro Warrior!"

Nitro Warrior responded by punching Marshmallon. My pink monster couldn't be destroyed in battle, but the shockwave from that attack hit me and I swerved a bit. I somehow manage to avoid any obstacles blocking my way when I was swerving. Then I heard Yusei end his turn.

Kokoro's Life Points: 3800 – 2300 = 1500

 _Not bad…_ I smiled. _Time to kick this Duel up a notch!_ I drew a card from my deck. "I play the spell card, Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two more cards. Next I discard a card from my hand to special-summon Quickdraw Synchron."

A small cowboy appeared next to Marshmallon. He twirled his dual pistols and done a fighting pose.

Quickdraw Synchron: Level 5, Wind

ATK: 700 DEF: 1400

Next I did a synchro-summon by tuning together Marshmallon and Quickdraw Synchron. After the usual tuning sequence, Junk Destroyer flew down from the sky. He was an armored man who was big as a muscle model, four arms, and windmill-like shuriken on his back.

Junk Destroyer: Level 8, Earth

ATK: 2600 DEF: 2500

"Junk Destroyer?!" Yusei gasped.

I smirked. "You're not the only one with a 'Junk' monster! I activate Junk Destroyer's ability! He can destroy many cards per non-Tuner monsters use to summon him. Let's get rid of your Nitro Warrior!"

Junk Destroyer threw his shuriken at the green monster. Nitro Warrior tried to punch it, but he was slice in two and died. Then I ordered him to attack Yusei directly. Junk Destroyer grabbed his flying weapon and threw it again and it was flying toward Yusei.

"I activate my trap card, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow! This card—"

"Can negate one attack per turn and it goes back to its facedown position instead of going to the graveyard."

"Uh… wow… I didn't even finish my explanation."

 _That's because my mom use that on me when we Duel! That card is frustrating!_ I was grinding my teeth with that thought.

An iron scarecrow appeared in front of Yusei and it bounced back the flying weapon to its owner. When that was done, it changed into a facedown card. I end my turn with a card facedown appearing behind Junk Destroyer.

As we turned a corner, Yusei drew his card. He set down a monster card and it appeared in front of him. He ended his turn.

 _What is he planning?_

My mind was firing all cylinders, trying to predict what he was planning. I was worried about his facedown monster, but I couldn't do anything because of his Scrap-Iron Scarecrow. I drew a card and hoped for the best.

"I activate the spell card, Mystical Space Typhoon! With this, I can destroy your trap card, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!"

A tornado blew at the facedown trap card and destroyed it. Then I ordered Junk Destroyer to attack Yusei's facedown monster. He threw his weapon and it revealed the monster, which was Shield Wing. It looked like a small pterodactyl that was green with its wings crossed over its face like an actual shield. It didn't die during this battle.

Shield Wing: Level 2, Wind

ATK: 0 DEF: 900

Yusei explained, "Shield Wing's special ability is that he can't be destroy in battle, nothing new about that. But… he needed to be attack a third time to be dead."

"Such an annoying monster…" _Then again… I have Marshmallon, so I shouldn't be complaining._ I end my turn with my brain trying to predict his next move.

Yusei drew his card and he ended his turn with two facedown cards. They appeared next to him. I wondered why I was imagining him being smug at that moment.

I looked at my deck and I heard my heart beating like drums before I drew my card. The card that I drew made me smile and I used it. "I activate the spell card, Soul Exchange! This card allows me to use your one of your monsters as a sacrifice for me to summon a more powerful monster. The downside is that I cannot conduct the battle phase, but it's worth it since I need to get rid of your defense. I sacrifice your Shield Wing to summon the Dark Magician Girl!"

Yusei's pterodactyl monster was cover in a blue aura and disappeared into thin air. A pink pillar of light shot up next to me and coming out of it was Dark Magician Girl who blew a kiss.

Dark Magician Girl: Level 6, Dark

ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700

"So, this is what a Turbo Duel feels like," said Dark Magician Girl. "I can fly freely! This is fun! Whee!"

I watched her joyfully spinning in the air like she was a kid in a fairy tale. I end my turn with a small chuckle.

"Nice one, Kokoro," he congratulated me as he drew his card.

"Flattery won't get you anywhere, Yusei," I replied. "You may get a good hit on me, but there's no way you can defeat me with my monsters here."

"We'll see about that! I activate Heavy Storm! This spell destroys all facedown cards in the spell and trap card zone!" Just like the Mystical Space Typhoon, it created a storm, but bigger like a hurricane.

 _What is Yusei doing!? Is he trying to get rid of his defense?_

But I was wrong when Yusei activated one of his facedown card. "I activate Starlight Road! If a card effect destroys more than two of my cards, this trap negates it and I can summon Stardust Dragon!" A beam of light appeared behind him and it stopped the storm. He raised his arm the air and shouted, "Take flight, Stardust Dragon!"

A large dragon that was towering over me appeared in front of Yusei. It looked slim for speed, scales that were white as the stars in space, and it sparkles like those stars.

Stardust Dragon: Level 8, Wind

ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000

"Stardust Dragon!" Dark Magician Girl was waving at the white dragon like a child saw her favorite superhero flying by. "It's been a long time! You are looking great! Do you lose weight?"

"Am I missing something here?" I whispered to her.

"Oh, sorry about that!" she whispered back. "I'm just happy to see an old friend! Man, I can't wait to tell this to Silent Magician!"

Then I switched my attention to Yusei, which I left Dark Magician Girl giddy. "That's a pretty dragon," I said. "But just because it's pretty doesn't mean it's strong enough to beat Junk Destroyer!"

"Are you sure?" Yusei's tone sounded a bit smug. "I activate Synchro Blast Wave from my hand! If I control a synchro monster like Stardust Dragon, I can destroy any card on the field like your Junk Destroyer!"

Stardust Dragon roared. Its voice created a shockwave that shattered Junk Destroyer in pieces.

"Well, I didn't see that coming," Dark Magician Girl spoke with her eyes bulging out and a smile twitching.

"Stardust Dragon! Attack Dark Magician Girl with your Cosmic Flare!" Yusei ordered.

The white dragon breathed out fire that was the same color. Dark Magician Girl tried to defend herself with a pink magic circle, but the dragon's attack pierced through. She was engulfed in the fire, thus she died.

Kokoro's Life Points: 1500 – 500 = 1000

 _This is fun!_ I smiled. _Why is it that Jack and Yusei keep getting me excited? Oh well… I'm not going to let them leave me in the dust!_

"I end my turn," said Yusei and then he revved pass me, making me to look at his back.

 _I'm not going to let you win!_ I drew my card. "I activate Card of Sanctity! With this spell, we can keep drawing until we have six cards in our hands! Next I use Monster Reborn to revive one of my favorites, Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

Coming out of a ground was a dragon that had scales and eyes that were blue as the sky. Its build looked a bit bigger than Stardust Dragon and it roared to show its dominance over the Duel.

Blue-Eyes White Dragon: Level 8, Light

ATK: 3000 DEF: 2500

Then I discard a card from my hand to activate the spell card, Tribute to the Doom to destroy Stardust Dragon. A blue demonic hand came out from the front of my Duel Runner and bandages flew out of it, trying to wrap the dragon in it.

"Not so fast!" he shouted. "I activate Stardust Dragon's Victim Sanctuary! If there's a card effect that destroys any cards on the field, my dragon sacrifices itself to negate the effect and destroys that card!"

The bandages fully wrapped around the Stardust Dragon's body. However, the dragon glowed white and broke free from its paper toilet-like bonds and then disappeared with a roar echoing the area.

"But you have no monsters defending you! Blue-Eyes! Attack Yusei and end this Duel with your White Lightning Attack!"

The blue dragon was charging a lightning beam inside its mouth for a few seconds. It fired his beam and it hit Yusei, covering him in a cloud of dust. Even though I was smiling, this Turbo Duel was far from over.

Yusei rode out of the cloud, unscathed. "Kokoro! I'm still in this Duel!" he shouted. "I activate Defense Draw! This trap card reduces the damage that I receive to zero and I get to draw one card."

I ended my turn. But then suddenly a pillar of light appeared next to Yusei and coming out of it was his Stardust Dragon. I was at awe, watching the white dragon sparkling on his return.

Yusei explained, "That is Stardust Dragon's special ability. When I use its Victim Sanctuary, my dragon will be revived at the end of the turn when I use it!"

"That's cool." I smirked. "But that doesn't matter, you only bought yourself another defense. On my next turn, I will win."

"We'll see about that!" He drew his card. "I activate two equip-spell cards; Fighting Spirit and Big Bang Attack! Fighting Spirit increases my dragon's attack points by three-hundred for every monster that you have and Big Bang Attack added four-hundred more! They will make my Stardust Dragon more powerful than your Blue-Eyes!"

Stardust Dragon: ATK: 2500 + 700 = 3200

"Next I summon Junk Blader!"

Appearing next to Stardust Dragon was a purple knight who wore a black cape that was tattered. Despite his slim build, he wielded a red broadsword that was slapped together by pieces of iron.

Junk Blader: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 1800 DEF: 1000

"This is the end of this Duel!" Yusei declared. "Stardust Dragon attacks your Blue-Eyes White Dragon! Cosmic Flare!"

Stardust Dragon fired its white flames onto Blue-Eyes. At first, my dragon was in pain, but suddenly its wings grew big and was glowing rainbow.

"I activate Honest's special ability from my hand!" I said. "If a Light monster like my Blue-Eyes is attack by a more powerful monster, I can discard Honest and my dragon's attack points increases by your Stardust's current power!"

Blue-Eyes White Dragon: ATK: 3000 + 3200 = 6200

Blue-Eyes fired his White Lightning Attack to pushed back Stardust's Cosmic Flare. We watched the white dragon being engulfed in the beam. Stardust Dragon had been obliterated and so was this Turbo Duel.

Yusei's Life Points: 2700 – 3000 = 0

Smoke came out of Yusei's Duel Runner and he stopped in front of our friends that were watching the Duel at the entrance of the party. I wonder how many laps we had gone through, but I brushed those thoughts aside as I parked next to my opponent who had a satisfied expression.

I removed my helmet and said, "That is a great Duel, Yusei. You almost got me there, but there's always next time."

Yusei took off his helmet and we gave each other a handshake. "That is indeed a great Duel. I will beat you next time."

"I like to see you try!"

"You guys did great!" Rally exclaimed as we saw him and the others coming toward us.

Crow slapped Yusei's back. "You almost had her! I was metaphorically at the edge of my seat from watching it! And you, Kokoro!" He pointed at me. "Let's Duel!"

I shook my head. "I already have my fill. Besides, this party isn't meant for me to Duel everyone." I noticed Jack who was watching us with his arms crossed and I approached him. "Jack! What do you think of the Turbo Duel?"

He hadn't spoken any words and he walked into the building.

"Nice talking to you!" I pouted, but that didn't last long.

I looked at Yusei's friends praising him for the Duel and the kids tried asking him for a ride, which he refused. Crow and three of my subordinates were looking at the Duel Runners. The doctor and the maroon scarf subordinate were looking at the recordings of the party. Seeing everyone happy and having fun made me feel warm and water broke out of my eyes.

"Everyone!" I called for their attention. I bowed my head and said, "Thank you for giving me such fun memories. Now I can leave with my head held high."

Despite my bright smile, the sad atmosphere seemed to have taken over the mood. My subordinates and friends, except Yusei, hung their heads down. The children were holding back their tears, but Midori was the only one bawling as if she was losing her favorite toy.

However, my subordinates bucked up with their chest proudly puffed up. They bowed their heads and shouted, "Thank you very much, Boss!"

The party ended without a hitch. Though many tried to force a smile on their faces, but I could tell that they were sad. However, I knew eventually that they wouldn't let the fact that I left effected their performance as Team Butterfly. I trust them, even without appointing a leader that would take my place.

* * *

The next night, after I said my goodbyes and gathered all my things in a suitcase tied to my Duel Runner, I arrived at the pipeline. I looked around and it seemed that this place was empty, though I couldn't be sure since the workers were doing the maintenance.

I had my eyes set on the target and then to the clock in my Duel Runner. My heart beats like the tic-tock sounds. When the appointed time came, I revved my engines to go at top speed. I was driving so fast that I was probably a blur to anyone who saw me.

The inside of the pipeline was bigger than the subway tunnels. The smell was worse than the burning garbage in factories, but I braved myself through it as I kept my high speed. Despite the loud sound of my engine roaring in the tunnel, I didn't see anyone trying to stop me. With the lack of security, I managed to exit out of the long passage with at least ten seconds left for the maintenance to be done.

I followed the road that led to the highway and I saw the city that made me awed. The lights shimmering through the darkness, the air was clean, and the place was clean. It was New Domino City.

 _I did it! I made it to New Domino City! Strange though… I was expecting that, with my luck, I would run into Sector Security on the way. Oh well! Time to find the place that Misty bought._

As I was on cloud nine, a raindrop hit my face. I looked up and there were dark clouds with a loud thunder. Water poured out from the sky like a waterfall. I groaned as I exited off the highway.


	11. Christmas Special 1

Disclaimer: This is a really short story for the holidays. Though I think Kokoro said the other disclaimer best here.

Christmas Special 1

Hello readers, my name is Kokoro Fernandez and I'm breaking the fourth wall for a bit. This story that the author is doing took place in the past, before I met the Enforcers. The reason for that is an act of apology for not making a new chapter in favor for making an original story that he is working on. I'm not sure when he will be back doing this, so be patient and don't send any threatening PMs to him. Anyway, enjoy the story and Merry Christmas!

* * *

It was the night of Christmas. My team and I were inside our care center, which was an abandoned office building, and we were having a holiday party. We entertained the children with games, food, and music, but I was the main attraction in the whole party. I was dueling Satoshi and I beat him within ten turns with Elemental Heroes deck. We didn't used our Duel Disks for the Duel because I didn't want them to be victims of the gang war.

"I lost!" Satoshi fell on his back with a sad face. "You're too strong, Kokoro!"

"Don't feel bad," I said. "Learn from this loss to improve your playstyle and deck."

"Argh! Rematch, Kokoro!"

"Hold it, Satoshi!" Ash stepped in between us with an angry expression. "We agree that we take turns playing against her! Move over!" She tried pushing Satoshi away, but he retaliated by doing the same thing.

I saw sparks coming out of their eyes as they growled each other like wolves fighting over food. It seemed that they couldn't compromise even if I said some wise words to them.

Then I felt someone tugging at the back of my shirt. I turned to see it was Midori who was carrying a small pot with a fully bloomed sunflower. She cutely looked at me and asked, "Kokoro, is Dark Magician Girl going to come?"

"Of course," I said with a smile. "If you had been good this year, she would come with a bag full of presents for you and everyone here."

Midori made a bright smile that was so cute that it gave me the warm fuzzies.

But why Dark Magician Girl and not Santa Claus for the party? I had been doing this since Team Butterfly's foundation. For every Christmas, I would use my power to summon Dark Magician Girl and she would give out gifts to the children in my care. Though her explanation of how she got those presents stemmed to "It's magic, there's no explanation". It made the kids happy, so I wouldn't pry the information out of her.

"Should we stop them?" Midori asked as she worriedly point at Satoshi and Ash, who were still glaring each other like animals.

Ash was the one to break the silence as she yelled, "You're a pig, Satoshi! All you did was to hog Kokoro's time for yourself!"

"Well, you're a dumb girl!" Satoshi retorted. "You never beaten me in a Duel!"

"Kokoro is a girl and she beats you!"

"That's different! Kokoro isn't like any other girls here! She fixes machines, punches things, and bosses people around! She is more of a boy in a girl's body!"

Satoshi's words had hit me deep as if it were a knife stabbing my heart. I knew that I didn't act like a girl during my childhood, but hearing that from a boy had make me want to cry. Midori became the person to intervene the fight between Satoshi and Ash, while I was regaining my composure.

Midori pouted and said, "Stop fighting! If you keep doing that, then Dark Magician Girl will not give you any presents!"

It caused the two kids to be silent with panicked faces. Sweat was coming out of their heads and they frantically looked at each other. They agreed on a truce with a handshake and Satoshi walked away to get food.

"Well, I'm going to check outside to see if Dark Magician Girl has shown up," I said as I got up from the floor. I noticed Ash's shocked expression as I apologized to her. "I'm sorry. I promise that I will Duel you in the morning."

"No fair." Ash sulked and I petted her head.

"Don't be like that. First thing in the morning, I will Duel you. I promise! Now… Smile, smile!" Seeing my smiling face made the little girl to smile as well.

I walked out the building with my active Duel Disk strapped onto my arm. I closed my eyes I felt a familiar and incredible power coursing through my body. I pulled out a card within my deck and slammed it on my Duel Disk. A pink magical circle appeared in front of me and Dark Magician Girl came out with a posed and a playful wink. In her hands was a red bag that looked empty.

"It's good to spread the Christmas joy in this gloomy place," she happily said. "So, Kokoro, have all the kids been good this year?"

I crossed my arms over my chest. "You know that they are good," I answered. "Are you ready to enter?" Dark Magician Girl nodded her head as her answer.

We entered the building and the kids ran towards the female sorcerer from the moment they saw her. I stood next to the subordinate with the blue bandanna and I watch the blonde girl handing them gifts of various sizes to the children around her. Their smiles have made this party brighter than the Christmas lights in the party.

Then my subordinate said, "I'm amazed that your friend keeps giving gifts like that. Your power is too amazing."

"I know, right," I replied.

"This party is a success like before."

I nodded my head. "Yeah. I hope that this happiness will spread all over Satellite."

"It will." I heard Silent Magician's voice coming from my deck box and I smiled.

Then I noticed Midori dragging Dark Magician Girl to me. I wonder what was going on as I asked, "Have you got your present from the nice Dark Magician Girl?"

Midori shook her head. "My gift from her is for you!"

"Huh?" I gasped.

Dark Magician Girl explained, "She wanted me to give you a gift. I am shock as well, but I must comply since she has been a good girl this year. Midori, I want you to think up a gift." She tapped Midori's head and then pulled out a big box in red wrapping from her empty bag.

I looked at the small girl. "Are you sure?" I asked and she happily nodded as her answer. I ripped open the box and I got a long white scarf with a blue butterfly on the end of it. "Thank you," I said with a smile and they too made the same expression.

Then Dark Magician Girl flied up in the air and shouted, "Everyone! I'm going to go home now! But I can't without your help! I want you guys to say the magic word in three… two… one…"

"Merry Christmas!" We all shouted and we watch the female sorcerer disappeared in a puff of smoke. We continued the party until the kids were tired. It was the best Christmas that I had experience so far and I hope we could top that one next year.


	12. It's a Start

Disclaimer: Looking for the second part, go back to chapter 10 for the rewrite. Also, this is pretty short compared to the other chapters (except for the Christmas special).

Chapter 11: It's a Start

 _Where is this place? Misty told me that this apartment is somewhere here?_

I entered in a plaza that had a water fountain in the center. The place had several shops and houses, but their lights were off. Due to the rain, I couldn't make heads or tails what the signs said without getting close to it.

After driving for a few short minutes, I found the building that was two-storied tall and had its lights on. Standing in front of it was a person, possibly an adult, wearing a hooded raincoat. That person was flashing a flashlight like a lighthouse in a foggy season. I stopped in front of the owner, which I was surprised to see that it was Misty.

"Took you long enough," she said with a playful wink.

"What are you doing out here in this kind of weather?"

"I was worried that you would be lost because of the heavy rain. I'm glad that this flashlight is powerful enough to shine through this kind of darkness." She was smiling proudly when she was talking about her tool. "We should get inside before you catch a cold, Kokoro."

I thanked her and we entered a building that looked like a store-home apartment. She showed me to the garage for my Duel Runner to stay in. It was strangely large and had tools lying around as if we were inside a workshop for clocks. Misty told me that I would get my answers from the landlady in the morning about the garage.

After leaving my Duel Runner, we went to our apartment on the second floor. We were then greeted by a teenage boy in his blue pajamas who was sitting on the couch of the living area. He said, "Sis! You're back, but… who's she?"

Misty introduced us. The boy in front of me was her little brother, Toby. He would be living with us because he was starting his school life in Duel Academy. I didn't mind about having a family member living with us, I was hoping that he didn't hold any resentment toward me for having his older sister to be an "accomplice" in this crime.

"So, you're Kokoro!" He exclaimed with a big smile. "I heard from my sister that you were from Satellite! How did you escape? Were you chased by any Sector Securities? What kind of place is Satellite?"

"Slow down! I can't answer that fast!" _It seems like he doesn't hold any resentment, so that's good._ I turned to Misty and asked, "Is your little brother always like this?"

"He was just curious." She giggled. "Toby, Kokoro has just arrive and she is soak. Save your questions in the morning, okay?"

"Okay!"

"Good. Now go to bed. You're starting school tomorrow."

Toby left the living area and headed to a room that I believed to be his bedroom. I glanced at Misty who was smiling in a pleasant manner. I could see why I imagined her as an older sister-type.

"What year is your brother in?" I asked.

"First-year," she answered. "You wanted to know if I told him about you. Well, I did. It can't be helped since our parents are too busy to care of him."

"Don't worry, I understand. A-A-Achoo!" I sneezed and my body shivered. I noticed that I had a puddle underneath my feet. "I need to take a bath right now… Achoo!"

It took me about twenty minutes in the bathtub. Those minutes felt like a bit longer because I was engrossed in the warm water heating my cold body. Misty told me that my clothes were finish in the washing machine and were drying at that moment. I put on my nightwear that I usually wore, which was a black tank top and blue shorts.

"That is nicest bath I have!" I sniffed my long black hair and I liked the smell of shampoo on it.

Misty giggled and I noticed that she was wearing a green night gown, which looked pretty on her. "I'm glad that you enjoy it. So, what are you plans now?"

I told her that my priority was to get a job. I needed to do something while gaining enough funds for myself before I could search for my mother. Though I was wondering if there was a job that didn't want to know my background.

"That does sound like a problem, which I have point it out to you earlier." Misty looked me sharply. "It's not a good idea to fake your documents since Sector Security needs to make sure if those documents are legit. Reality is harsh."

"Yeah… But I can't mooch off you! I want to have a job to pay you back!"

"That's sweet of you." Misty hugged me and she smelled like flowers like the shampoo that I used. "You could try and ask the landlady for a job here or possibly with any connections."

 _I like that idea._ I stretched my body with a yawn. The bones from my back and shoulders made cracking sounds.

Misty brought me to our bedroom, which large enough for two beds. At least it wouldn't be awkward for us two girls sleeping together. The bed was more comfortable than the one back home; no lumps and the pillows weren't lacking softness. I slept well that night.

* * *

 _I had a dream that took me back into the past when my mom was training me to control my powers. I was seven-years-old at the time and it was during the autumn season. We were standing on a huge rubble in front of a large crater; it was the place where the explosion that separated Satellite and New Domino City two decades ago happened._

 _"Kokoro! Focus your energy into that card! Try to imagine pouring water into a small cube!"_

 _"Yes, mom!"_

 _I had my eyes focus on the Winged Kuriboh card and I followed my mom's instruction. I felt my energy traveling from my heart to the card in my fingertips. It was draining like an energy-sucking vampire was taking my energy through my fingers._

 _Then the card glowed in a white light that formed into a small ball. That round object transformed into Winged Kuriboh and he wasn't transparent like a ghost. The flying hairball monster was happy for my success as it flew around my head in circles._

 _I was overjoyed that I hugged him into my chest. His brown fur was ticklish and he was nuzzling my face like a pet puppy._

 _"Good job, daughter!" Mom gave a thumb up. "Now that you successfully summoned a weak monster like Winged Kuriboh, then you have no problem of harming people unknowingly. Though we're keep doing this with stronger monsters. I say we should jumped at a level four monster like… let's see… the Mystical Elf will do!"_

 _Mom handed me the card and I did the same thing. Mystical Elf appeared next to Winged Kuriboh. She was beautiful with her long brownish-blonde hair, blue skin, and green dress. Though my admiration was cut short when I collapsed on the ground._

 _Mystical Elf caught me and looked at me with a worried face. "Kizuna, please give your daughter some rest," said the blue skin elf. "She put in too much of energy into summoning me."_

 _"Well, that's because you are bigger than Winged Kuriboh," mom bluntly answered._

 _I must be imagining it, but I saw a vein popping out of the Mystical Elf's head as she was smiling like an angel. She raised a fist and she slowly walked up to mom who was apologizing._

 _Winged Kuriboh float next to my face as I was sitting on the ground. He comforted me by rubbing his soft fur against my cheeks. It was nice._

 _Mom approached me with a pained expression and her hands rubbing the top of her head. Mystical Elf was following behind her and she was still smiling, though she looked satisfied._

 _"Okay! Now that you are tucker out from summoning someone stronger than Winged Kuriboh, you have grasp the power gap." Mom poked my forehead with her index finger with a proud smile. "You can summon your allies to defend yourself against the harsh location known as Satellite; however, you may end up killing some people. Understand how much you poured your power into the card, so that your enemies don't die from just one hit."_

 _Mystical Elf added, "Also, be mindful with the monsters you summon. The 'power gap' that Kizuna mention is about us Duel Monsters. Not just our levels; our size, the amount of power needed to harm people, and the time spent for us walking alongside you will drain your energy. Bear in mind which monsters that you are summoning."_

 _I nodded my head. Then I mentally turned off my powers and the two Duel Monsters disappeared into thin air._

 _"There's still much I need to teach you." Mom petted my head and I was happy for that. "Let's head back to the hideout. I'm making your favorite fried rice!"_

 _That was my memory before everything faded into white. Remembering it brought tears into my eyes._

* * *

"Kokoro! Wake up! It's ten o'clock!"

I heard Silent Magician calling me and I woke up. Even though I was sleeping comfortably in a soft bed, I felt sluggish.

"Good morning, Silent Magician."

"Good morning." She looked at me with a hint of anger in her eyes. "Misty and Toby tried to wake you up, but you didn't and they left. They left you a message on that counter over there."

Silent Magician pointed at the letter-sized paper on the drawer next to me. I picked it up and read it.

It said, "Kokoro, we tried to wake you for breakfast, but you were such a heavy sleeper that we had to give up. The landlady, Mrs. Zora, is downstairs. You can ask her for breakfast, along with your questions. We won't be home until the afternoon." Misty's name was on the bottom part of the letter and put it back to where I found it.

Silent Magician disappeared and I took a quick bath. After that was done, I changed into last night clothes that were finished drying.

I headed downstairs and I saw an old woman wiping off a counter in the lobby. She looked like a nanny and I approached her. I asked, "Are you, Mrs. Zora?"

"I see that you're awake," she said. "I am Zora, the owner of this apartment."

"I'm Kokoro, nice to meet you!" The two of us shook our hands with warm smiles.

"Ms. Tredwell told me that you were taking a long time to wake up. She requested me to make you breakfast, which I don't understand; you're old enough to take care of yourself. She warned me that if I wanted to have my kitchen intact, I have to serve you food."

 _I can't believe Misty…_ I groaned as I bowed my head. "Sorry for causing you trouble."

"I don't mind."

Zora took me to the kitchen at the other side of the lobby. I sat in the dining table and I watched her cooking a scrambled egg and two pieces of bacon. When she was done, she served the food to me alongside a small bowl of rice. I took a bite of the eggs and they tasted good, a bit better than the meals served in the cafeterias. I ended up wolfing down the food until I asked for seconds.

Then we heard someone knocking at the backdoor of the kitchen. I was eating my second meal and Zora answered it.

"Hey, when did you get back?" Zora asked. "It has been three years since we last see each other."

"That's true! Also, I just got back a while ago," A female voice spoke up and it sounded familiar.

I stopped eating and my eyes widened in shock. _It can't be… Why…?_

"I was expecting your son taking over this place, but you… and turning this clock shop into an apartment. What happen?"

"Let's just say that my son and I got into an argument and he ran away. I leave it at that. Though I'm glad that you're fine and healthy, Kizuna."

I got off my chair that it fell and made a loud sound. I turned around and I couldn't believe my eyes that my mother was there, talking to the landlady.

My mom saw me and smiled. "It has been a while, Kokoro… my daughter."


	13. Mother and Daughter

Disclaimer: Tried to find out if the Fortune Cup was an annual thing through a wiki, but couldn't find it and didn't want to binge-watch a season of 5D's to figure that out.

Chapter 12: Mother and Daughter

My mom looked the same when she left me alone. Her black hair was short and wild with red ascents, her skin was light brown, and her face looked young even though she was in her forties. She wore a bright purple coat, a white t-shirt, dark blue jeans, and black sneakers. She had her maroon purse strapped around her left shoulder.

I continued to glare at her with murderous intent. My blood was boiling and the power that I was charging was out of control. My mom was looking at me, acting cool.

"You're Kizuna's daughter!?" Zora was shock as she turned her head to me. "Actually, now that I look at you closely… you do look like her when I first met her."

I turned off powers because I couldn't drag the landlady into my family problems. I replied, "Yes, I am _Kizuna's_ daughter. My full name is Kokoro Fernandez."

"Um, why did you emphasize my name like that?" Mom asked with a small chuckle. "Whatever happened with 'mommy', 'mom', or 'mama'? You know, the things you called me when you were kid."

"Oh please!" I laughed in a pleasant and haughty manner like I was a milady-like character. "I'm now an adult and I can call you, _Kizuna_ , as much as I want." Silence filled the room as mom and I were looking at each other with "smiles" on our faces.

"Did something happen between you two?" Zora asked.

Mom waved her hand and replied, "There's nothing, Zora. Also, sorry for this sudden visit."

"I don't mind," said Zora. "Kizuna, want to join us for breakfast?"

"Sure am! You're cooking is always amazing! Isn't that right, Kokoro?"

I nodded my head as my answer. The breakfast was better than any meal that were made in Satellite. "Well, I'm done eating. I'm going to go out for a walk."

"Are you sure?" The landlady stopped me by asking a question. "Shouldn't you spend some time with your mother? I can tell from your conversation with Kizuna that you haven't seen her for a long time."

 _My cousin said the same thing!_ I shrugged my shoulders and I took my seat when I realized that I would give out a bad impression to my landlady.

Mom sat in the chair in front of me and Zora went to the kitchen to cooked the same eggs and bacon. I watched mom looking at me with a pleasant expression. Seeing that face made me want to punch her. My fist was trembling under the table. The sizzling sound from Zora's cooking and the smell filled the room. The fact that we were silent was awkward.

 _I need to say something!_ Those thoughts were screaming. I opened mouth and a question came out. I asked, "Why are you here, _Kizuna_?"

"I came here to visit an old friend," she answered. "It's a strange coincidence that you're here, Kokoro. I always knew that you're smart enough to get out of Satellite."

 _Idiot!_ I covered my mom's mouth with my hands. I believed my eyes were shot with blood popping out of anger. _I can't believe her to say that aloud!_ I silently prayed that Zora didn't hear that, but that prayer was useless.

"You're from Satellite?" Zora came in the scene with a plate of food in hand. "Kizuna, what do you mean by that?"

Mom struggled to force my hands out of her mouth, which she succeeded. She answered to Zora that she left me in Satellite and the landlady reacted with a gasp. I couldn't believe that mom casually spoke about my life as I bit my lower lip out of frustration. By the way, Zora placed the food in front of Kizuna and she was eating her meal.

"I was wondering why Ms. Tredwell kept your whereabouts a secret," said Zora.

Kizuna giggled. "My daughter doesn't want to cause too much trouble, that's why her roommate doesn't tell you. As her mother, I'm so proud of her."

"But you're just telling me that your daughter is breaking the law. Is that okay for you to speak out those things here? What if a Sector Security officer hear about this and arrest her?"

 _I agree! How can you do this to me!?_ I was glaring at my mom as if I was giving her the death stare, but she wasn't fazed by it.

"I'm not that worried." Mom waved her hand with a cocky smile, though I noticed a black aura coming out of her. "If by chance they did arrest my daughter, then I would speak to their boss directly. That _guy_ owed me a lot." Her smile had become a devil's smile.

Zora sighed as if she had given up on talking to mom. She turned to me and said, "I'm sorry that you have someone like her as your mother. I regrettably known her since she was a high school student."

"Hold on there, Zora! Why your tone sounded like you were insulting me? Actually, I don't want you to answer that…"

Mom was pouting as she furiously shoveled down her food. That little exchange between them was amusing, but I didn't show that on my face.

Then Zora placed her hand on my shoulder. "It's okay, Kokoro. I won't tell anyone about your situation."

"I'm done!" Mom raised her emptied plate in the air.

"That fast!" I gasped.

Zora took the plates that were left on the table into the kitchen sink to washed them. As soon as she left, mom put her chair next to me and suddenly embraced me. I reacted in shock and I tried to punch her, but mom's arms placement held down mine's.

I tried to stay calm as I asked, "Why are you hugging me, _Kizuna_?"

"Aw, don't be so cold, Kokoro. Can't I, your mother, hug you since we haven't see each other for a long time?"

"We see each other the other day when you kick my stomach. Also, how are _you_ a mother?"

Mom playfully poked my nose. "Don't be so mean, Kokoro. What's wrong with a little 'tough love'? Besides, I did that to protect you."

"Protect me… Stop lying, you fucking bitch!" I snapped and I grabbed her arm that was poking me with the intention of crushing it. My loud voice was surprising that Zora dropped a plate to the floor.

Mom was indifferent of my response as she gasped, "Whoa! Hostile!"

I squeezed her arm hard enough that her bones were being crushed. "Stop acting like you're my mother! You left me alone in Satellite that had criminals and thugs living there! Do you know the kind of hell I had gone through? You weren't there when I was crying over Sergey's grave! You weren't there when the earthquake happened! You weren't even there when the gang war became the Warring Period! I hate you!" Tears were coming of my eyes. I let go of mom, wiped my tears, and choking on my sobs. _Why do you leave me?_ Those words didn't come out of my mouth.

Then mom placed her hand on my head and she had a serious face that made her to look like an adult. "Have you gotten that off your chest?"

I sniffled and shook my head as my answer.

"You have every right to be mad at me," said mom in a remorseful tone. "I have my reasons why I left you, but I can't tell you about them. But if you want to know, then win the King's Cup."

I stopped crying, though the tears and snot were still visible on my face. "K-King's C-Cup? W-What's t-that?"

She answered, "It's a tournament where the best Duelists gather to become the King of all Duelists."

 _Sounds like the King of Games…_

"Also, Kaiba Corporation sponsors it, so… yeah. If you can win the tournament, then I'll tell you my reasons. Though that is a big 'if'. I bet you're wondering why. Well, I want to see how much you have grown since the last time we Dueled. Think of it as a game where the final boss is waiting for you after you beaten many opponents. That same deal you use on your friends, the Enforcers, am I right?"

 _How does she know that?_ I was given a tissue from mom and I wiped away the tears and snot.

Then mom pulled out a small ticket and a brown envelop from her purse. "Don't ask how I obtained a participation ticket. Just think of this as your birthday present. By the way, 'Happy birthday', even though your birthday is next week."

I wasn't sure that I should be feeling happy or angry at this gift. I slightly crushed the ticket in my hand. "Huh? What's in the envelope?"

"Those are your documents like birth certificate, medical insurance, and social security. They're not fabricated, by the way. You're planning to find a job here in New Domino City, but you can't without them. I thought this is the least I can do as your mother."

I didn't know what to say. I wanted revenge against her for abandoning me, but at the same time, I wanted her parental love. I gritted my teeth out of anger.

Mom got off her seat and headed to the door. "I'm leaving now. See you later, Zora, and I'll be sure the next time we see each other that there'll be less drama." She exited the apartment and Zora followed her.

Since they were gone, I went back to my bedroom. I put the ticket and envelope on the drawer and lain on my bed. I put my face into the pillow and screamed my anger into it. I calmed down, sort of, afterwards and I fell asleep with my head pounding.

* * *

"Kokoro, wake up."

I heard Silent Magician's voice and I woke up in a room that wasn't the apartment. It looked like a library-like office with a bed inside a castle. The room was lit by the yellow stones that were floating around. I noticed that outside the window that the sky was darken with clouds and there were purple trees without leaves; almost straight out of a gothic or horror story. I was in the Duel Monsters' Spirit World… again.

"Kokoro, eyes over here."

I turned to Silent Magician in her adult form who was sitting on a chair next to me. However, something was different about her. Her usual white-blue magician's outfit made her looked wise and mature, but her new clothes that showed her bare waist made her alluring. My eyes were staring at her outfit that I didn't notice her face got close to mine's.

"Are you feeling okay?" Silent Magician asked and I noticed that her face was attractive that I would blush.

I shook my head and answered, "I-I'm fine, Silent Magician. So, why am I here?"

"I just want to talk to you."

She got off her chair and sat next to me on the bed. There was a moment of silence between us. She was staring at me as if she was waiting for me to say something and it was awkward.

I couldn't handle her gaze as I exclaimed, "Okay, what do you want to talk about? Is it about mom, right? Is that it?"

Silent Magician remained silent. No response and it frustrated me.

"I hate my mom! I hate her so much that I want to scream that out in the heavens! You remember the day when she left me! I was like ten-years-old! She spent my childhood training, Dueling, and surviving in Satellite! And one day—poof! She was gone without saying anything to me!"

My blood was boiling with anger. I must be bright red when I was yelling out my thoughts to the cool and collected Silent Magician who remained silent. I stood up from the bed, paced around the room, and continued my rambling.

"Then that fucking bitch appeared when I was helping Kalin and she knocked me out! Her reason for that was to protect me! Protect me! When she started to act like a mother who cared about me after she was gone for so long?"

I punched a wall and a large picture of a large red dragon fell on the ground without breaking its frame. The pain felt like I was breaking my knuckles. I turned to Silent Magician and she wasn't fazed by my behavior.

"She also made a bet with me that if I want to know why she left and it was to win the King's Cup! I can't believe she use my own incentive idea as an excuse to leave without trying to tell me anything! Lastly… I… don't know how I should feel after talking to her." I sadly looked at my reddened knuckles. "I'm confuse with these mixed emotions of anger, happiness, and sadness. Is it because I miss speaking to her? Or am I just having issues? Argh…!"

I was racking my head into trying to make any sense with my emotions and thoughts. Steam was like puffing out of my ears.

"Have you gotten everything off your chest?" Silent Magician spoke and it surprised me that I subconsciously nodded my head. Then she got off the bed and embraced me with her chest against my face. "There, there. Even though you felt betrayed by Kizuna's action years ago, it didn't mean that you couldn't be mad at her for long. Just take your time to sort out your emotions and when you meet her again, let those emotions out in your Duel."

Her kind and gentle words had struck a chord in me. I felt water was building in my eyes, but I closed them and held it back in. Then the creaking sound of the door slowly opening interrupted this happy atmosphere. We saw Dark Magician Girl and Winged Kuriboh who were eavesdropping. I had a blank expression from seeing them, but Silent Magician had her mouth opened in shock and her face flushed red. Dark Magician Girl casually entered the room with Winged Kuriboh flying toward me with a cheery mood that made me happy.

"W-What are you two doing here?!" Silent Magician asked in a shaken tone.

"We're also worry about Kokoro," Dark Magician Girl answered. "You're a good _mother_ to our _daughter_ , Silent Magician." She was giggling that made Silent Magician to lose her cool.

"Since when we're mothers!? And how is Kokoro our daughter!?"

Winged Kuriboh and I were watching the two women bickering, though it was more like teasing. I couldn't help but laugh, causing all eyes on me in surprise. It was amusing to see someone who was calm being broken down by a person who was the opposite.

I thanked Silent Magician for listening to my problems and Dark Magician Girl for cheering me up. The two spellcasters and Winged Kuriboh were happy when I said that. Silent Magician used her magic to send me back to the real world and everything faded to black.

* * *

My eyes opened and I was back in the bedroom. I raised my body and stretched away the stiffness in my joints. I noticed outside my window that the sun was going down.

 _How long was I sleeping?_

I yawned and walked out of the room with the envelope in my hand. The moment that I opened the door, I heard someone made a gasping sound. It was Toby who looked happy to see me and it seemed that he was studying because of the book he was reading.

"Kokoro! You're awake!" He got off the chair and approached me. "Are you okay? Sis and I heard about what happen while we're gone."

"I'm fine." I smiled. "No, seriously! I am! A good rest helps me to release my stress."

"Are you really? I mean sis was trying to pry a lot of information out of our landlady. She was really worried about you."

I was surprised to hear that. I didn't know why would Misty care about me since we met and chat in the Internet. I could guess that it must be times that I gave her encouragements when I noticed her nervousness. She was amazed of how I saw through her mature expression. I wonder if that was the cause of her caring about me, but I shrugged that thought away.

Then Misty came up the stairs. I greeted her and she embraced me with her hand patting my back. After that, she asked, "Are you okay?"

But my response was, "How come everybody is hugging me today? What am I—a teddy bear?"

"Sorry," she laughed. "It's just… when I heard from Ms. Zora that your mom was here, I thought you would be emotionally hurt."

"I was… But I'm okay now after a good rest."

"Are you sure it wasn't your Duel Spirit friends cheering you up?"

I covered Misty's mouth and I looked at Toby in hope that he didn't hear that. _Why is it that my secrets are coming out without asking me?_

Misty explained to me that Toby had the information about my powers. Since the three of us were going to be living together, she told her little brother about my secret so that he shouldn't be questioning why I would be talking to thin air. I would find that embarrassing and hard to explain to Toby; I released her mouth and thanked her.

"Speaking about powers," Misty raised a finger. "Kokoro, when you have the time, can you teach my little brother how to control his power?"

"His power?" I tilted my head.

"I'm a Psychic Duelist," Toby spoke up.

I was surprised to hear that. I became silent and looked at Misty and Toby for at least four swings of my head. I had my eyes set on Misty and asked, "Why didn't you tell me this earlier?"

"I didn't know when it was a good time to tell you," she answered. "You were entering New Domino City and Toby is going to school, how am I supposed to tell you with those things going on?"

"Good point," I said. "I will teach Toby, but I want to know one thing. Has he hurt anyone?"

Misty shook her head. "He discovered his power a long time ago and he avoided harming people by Dueling without a Duel Disk."

"Well, that's good." I smiled as I looked at the envelope. The two asked me about the item and I answered, "This contains the documents that my mother gives me earlier. She said that this will help me with my job search."

I opened the envelop and took out its contents. It had everything that my mom told me; birth certificate, medical insurance, and social security. Misty and I were shock when we looked at the birth certificate; it said that I was born in the Tops of New Domino City. It made me wonder why mom and I were in Satellite, but to me, it didn't seem important as we discovered a letter inside the envelope. It said the following:

 _Dear Kokoro,_

 _Congratulations on getting out of Satellite! Good for you! I bet you're surprise of receiving this letter from me (unless I have given to you in person)! I also bet you didn't even care about your birth. But then again, how long you live in Satellite will change your viewpoint of life. Anyway, are you looking for a job in New Domino City? I got one for you!_

 _A friend of mine was looking for a mechanic. His name is Chuck Jordan and he's the owner of a repair shop called the Den Repairs. Go there and tell him that I send you, he'll give you the job! Remember to stay healthy and don't get yourself killed!_

 _Love,_

 _Kizuna_

"At least your mom suggests a job for you," Misty commented.

I crossed my arms over my chest. "I hate this…" I grumbled. "I hate my mom, but she suggests me a job that fits my skills. The only problem is that I want a job without any help from her of all people. But I'm not entirely confident with my interview skills."

"We can hear you muttering," said Misty. "But this is an opportunity that you should take! Think about it… Getting a job here is difficult because you need connections and experience. In your case, you can't get a job without them."

Then Toby jumped in by asking, "What if Mr. Jordan couldn't hire her?"

That sounded possible. I was a little bit scared of that possibility that my heart sank.

Misty happily replied, "That's okay! Even if Kokoro didn't get hire, I will use my position to get her a modeling career."

My eyes were widened in shock. _Me? A model? No way! There's absolutely no way!_

The idea of me as a model was absurd because I couldn't see myself wearing fancy clothing and swimsuits and posed in front of a camera. I was confident of my face and hair, but not my body. I didn't hear my subordinates and the Enforcers talking about it, which made me not to see myself as a model. I told Misty about my insecurities of her idea.

"That's not true." Misty's eyes sparkled with her beaming smile. "I can definitely see you as one. Your body is perfect to be model. Look at your chest and curves! If you made a seductive expression with that body, you could make any men to pick up a magazine!"

I was fluster from Misty's compliments that my cheeks were burning. It was the first time that someone I knew say those things. Before things escalated any further, Toby told us that it was time for dinner and end our conversation like that as we walked downstairs. Zora made our dinner and, after we ate our meals, went straight to bed.

* * *

"Kokoro, you're awake. Good morning."

I was sitting on a couch with a laptop turned on. The sun was rising for the new day and Misty entered the scene. She greeted me with warm hospitality.

"Good morning, Misty," I greeted her back. "I'm a little worry about my friends back in Satellite and I thought that I should check on them. You don't mind if I use your laptop?"

"It's fine."

Feeling happy that I got her permission, I used the video-telephone and call the number that I used to contact Misty. After a few rings, the one who answered the call was the doctor. He was happy that he shouted to the people around him. I heard children screaming and four familiar kids; Satoshi, Shinji, Ash, and Midori jumping up close to the camera.

"It's Kokoro! Kokoro!" Ash was waving her hand.

"She's okay," said Satoshi.

"Hello," Shinji spoke.

"Kokoro, how are you doing?" Midori meekly asked.

"Hey! Let me see Butterfly Lady!" I heard Lily's voice shouting behind them.

The kids argued and pushed each other away. Their little fight knocked the camera to the ground and I heard a lot of gasps.

Misty was giggling. "You're popular, Kokoro!"

 _I just hope that they don't break the computer along with the camera…_

"Okay, kids, that's enough." The doctor fixed the camera into its position. I saw his face along with some of my subordinates behind him.

They told me everything that happened while I was gone. There were small fights in Satellite, though not as big as the gang war and that was good to hear. Crow met two men named Robert and Bolton and they were helping everyone with taking of the kids. Yusei was preparing himself for the pipeline next month and Jack went somewhere Dueling some thugs. Lastly, Sector Security were patrolling the streets more since they recruited more people. For better or worse, at least they were safe.

Then I told them what happened to me. It was a short storytelling compared to theirs and I was honest with them about my mom's bet. They were concerned when I mention about my mother, but I told them that I was doing fine and they smiled.

"I will win that bet," I said. "I want to know what mom is doing for all this time."

"Well," the maroon scarf subordinate spoke. "We'll be cheering for you from here!"

The blue bandanna subordinate jumped in, "Good luck in the King's Cup, Boss!"

We said our goodbyes and ended the call. That was when we noticed Toby who woke up and was getting ready for school. We left the apartment after we ate our breakfast.


	14. The Gloomy Girl

Disclaimer: Kokoro looking for a job may be a bit real, so apologies to any readers who have this experience before.

Chapter 13: The Gloomy Girl

I took my Duel Runner to the Den Repairs, which was near at the entrance ramp to the highway from the Tops' area. It was a three-garage repair shop with a huge neon sign of its name. After I parked my ride, I entered the building's lobby area where two people were talking to two workers who were wearing grey engineer uniforms and work at the counter with the computers.

"Hello and welcome!" One of the workers greeted me.

I waved my hand and I took a seat at one of the empty chairs near the display of tires on the wall. It felt refreshing to be in a room with a good air conditioner. I watched the people handed the workers their keys and sat next to me as they watch TV that was hanging on the ceiling. The workers gave the keys with a paper to their coworkers in the back of the room.

Then coming out from the backdoor was a dark skin man who had muscles like a wrestler. His short brown hair was covered by his grey hat and his sideburns grew to his chin, giving him a beard. He wore the grey engineer uniform and a pair of sunglasses.

The wrestler noticed me as he asked, "Are you here for repairs or a pickup?"

I took a deep breath and approached him. I said, "I'm looking for the owner of this repair shop, Chuck Jordan. Is he here?"

"You're looking at him." He pointed his thumb at himself.

That fact didn't deter me from acting like a professional. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Jordan. I am Kokoro Fernandez."

"Kokoro!?" he gasped and then he laughed heartedly as he patted my shoulders three times and it felt numbing. "You're Kizuna's daughter! So, you come for the job!?"

 _Did mom told him that I was looking for a job?_ "I thought I should take the opportunity given to me. I'm an adult after all and… I want to pay back the people who help me to be here."

Chuck became silent for a short moment before he burst into laughter. "I did not expect that! I thought you would be like Kizuna, but I see that you're your own person! That's good! Come with me."

I followed him to the back of the shop, which was the garage-workshop with three doors. I saw about several workers working on a car and motorcycle. The fuel that lingered the air smelled like rotten eggs, but that was nothing new.

He brought me to his small office and I took a seat in front of his desk and he sat at the other end. This kind of space would feel incredibly tense for any newcomer looking for a job, though I felt it mildly. I sat up straight with my knees close together, my heart was slowly beating, and my hands were getting wet over my legs.

Chuck grabbed a clipboard with a paper and a pen and placed them on his desk. He looked at me and asked me questions.

First question: "Have you had any experience with tools or machines?"

"I am. I fix a few household appliances like the lights, heater, and computer. I even built my own Duel Runner."

Second question: "Besides a Duel Runner, have you fixed a vehicle?"

"I repair two cars. Though they kind of broke down in front of my house and the owners are real nice."

Third question: "How well do you work with other people?"

"Very well. I coordinate my team of repairing the cars."

I wasn't sure how many times I kept looking at the side whenever I answered the questions. My heart was pounding like they were trying to jumped out of my chest. The back of my neck had this cold sweat. I watched Chuck writing down our conversation on the paper.

He put his on his ear and said, "We're done. Hang on a second." He replaced the paper with another one from his drawer and showed it to me. It was an application form. "It's faster to interview you first. Please write out the form."

I filled most of it with the information that I had at the time with the omission of my life in Satellite. I didn't add in any lies about myself like my education. My hands were trembling when I handed him the form.

Chuck hummed as his eyes were at the paper. "Hmm… Good, good. It will take me seven days for me to process your application. I'll call you about the status of it. If you don't hear me, well… I keep it for about three months."

I thanked him and I exited out of the building. I felt butterflies spinning around my stomach and my head feeling woozy like I got off from a rollercoaster. I walked to my Duel Runner with shaken legs.

"Are you feeling okay?" Silent Magician as she spiritually appeared in her child form.

"I-I'm f-fine…" My words shook. I took a deep sigh to calm my beating heart. "I didn't realize how tough it was to get a job. My only work experience was my volunteer job in the Satellite's soup kitchen. And that was during my teenage years."

"Don't worry." Silent Magician gave me a reassuring smile. "Even if you don't get the job, you can always take Misty's offer."

 _Is that my only choice?_ "I need to do something. Going back home and laze around isn't a good thing for me."

"Explore this part of the city?"

"Exactly."

I put on my helmet as soon as Silent Magician vanished. I got on my ride and drove away into the streets.

* * *

I arrived at the plaza that was near the apartment. I had spent my hours until the afternoon to find the important places like the grocery store, pharmacy, bank, restaurant, clothing store, etc. I jotted them all down in my notebook that I carried in my back pocket. I parked my Duel Runner and I took a seat on the fountain, eating a cheap burger that I bought from a fast-food joint.

"This place is peaceful compare to Satellite," I muttered. "The air is clean, there is no smoke, and all the people dress neatly. I'm jealous."

My hand clenched on the burger that the ketchup oozed out like blood. I must have been angry. The thoughts of these ignorant people living without a care in the world made my blood boiled. I knew that I shouldn't be mad because there were factors why Satellite became the ruined city. I didn't want the anger to take over my reasoning as I wolfed down my burger until I threw away the wrapper in a nearby trashcan.

 _I'm done exploring. I should head back._

"Hey, are you sure we should be doing this?"

I saw three young boys talking to each other in an outdoor café. They seemed to be students from Duel Academy because they wore the blue blazers like Toby. I brought out my notebook and eavesdropped their conversation.

"We have to," said the blonde pretty boy. "That chick thinks she's high and mighty because of her family. We ask her out and she flatly rejects us. We're going to put that girl in her place."

The boy with glasses shook his head, he was the one who spoke out the question. "But we could be in a lot of trouble. Also, I heard rumors about her; they say that girl can make Duel Monsters to become real and attack people."

"That can't be true," said the bulky boy. "Also, we're not going to get in trouble. Look around. No one is paying attention."

They didn't notice that I was listening in on their conversation. I was sitting on a bench next to a neatly trimmed bush that acted like a small wall between us. I had my eyes focused to my notebook and my ears were set on the boys.

 _I found myself the worst kind of carnivores._ I smiled. _What kind of punishment I should give them…? Call Sector Security, maybe?_

The boys noticed someone walking passed the café. That someone was a burgundy hair girl who was wearing a red blazer. She had this gloomy aura that dark clouds were hanging over her head. I wondered why these guys were attracted to her.

I saw them approaching her. The blonde boy spoke, "Hey, Akiza. Fancy meeting you hear!"

The girl, Akiza, looked at them through her bangs and asked, "Who are you? What do you want?"

A cold wind blew across the plaza. I was imagining a tumbleweed rolling with the breeze.

 _Wow, what a cold reception._ A sweat dropped across my cheek. I noticed she activated her red Duel Disk that was attached to her right arm. I saw that the people around saw their action, but they turned a blind eye.

"Don't be like that." The buff boy stood behind her.

The blonde boy approached her closely. "Is that the kind of attitude to act towards your seniors? We just want to have a little talk."

They failed to notice that Akiza drew a card from her deck. I was smiling despite having a chill down my spine.

"I don't have time for this." The female student tried to walk away, but the blonde boy grabbed her right arm.

"Come on, Akiza. We just want to show you something fun. I know you want to."

Before he wrapped his arm around her, Akiza swiftly placed the card she drew onto her Duel Disk. The ground shook with the cracks appearing on the paved road. Coming out of those cracks were vine-like tentacles from a giant rose monster that appeared behind the teenage girl. The monster wrapped its tentacles around the three boys in the air. The people around me were screaming and running for their lives, while I was standing still.

 _This is the better punishment then I can think of. I should probably stop her before Sector Security shows up._

"Help! Let me down, witch!" The blonde boy screamed.

"Someone help!" The boy with glasses also screamed.

"Pick a fight with me, huh! I'll show you!" The bulky boy tried to pulled the vine apart.

I clapped my hands and she turned to my direction. "Bravo, bravo. I'll give you points for handling your attackers, but I will minus some because you done it in public. Your grade is… a B plus."

"Who are you?" Akiza asked in a lowly tone.

"I am just a passerby named Kokoro. Now will you let those boys go. They already learn their lesson."

"You're not the boss of me! Rose Tentacles, attack this bitch!"

"Hey! Language, young lady!"

The giant plant monster sent its three tentacles at me. They were coming at me like snakes crawling through the ground. I pulled a card from deck box and used my power to activate it. A giant ring with four shields that made it looked like a four-leaf clover appeared in front of me and swung the vines away. I used the spell, Ring of Defense.

Akiza was shocked as her mouth was hanging open. "You make that card real!? What are you?"

I smiled as my shield disappeared and I drew two cards. "Like I said… I'm just a passerby. Let's go, Celtic Guardian!"

An elvish man in a green armor and wielding a sword appeared in front of me. He jumped and cut down the vines, freeing the boys from the monster's grasp. The boys fell on the ground with a crashing sound.

I glared at them. "You guys better leave or I will tell Sector Security about you harming the girl."

"But that monster is the one who attack us!" The blonde boy retorted. "They will arrest her, not us!"

"Don't act like I didn't hear your conversation at that café earlier. I also have a recording on me."

"You're lying!"

"Try me."

While this was going on, Celtic Guardian was fighting against the Rose Tentacles. He was deflecting the wild vines with his sword like he was swatting a fly with a swatter.

The blonde boy looked at me while his gritting his teeth. I was smiling like a villain as I imagined him and his friends as pieces of garbage. We were waiting to see which one who would draw their gun. Then the boy and his friends left the area with the leader shouting out about revenge or something in the likes.

When they were gone from my sight, I let a huge sigh of relief. I felt my spirit leaving my body with my mind screaming, _I can't believe they bought my bluff!_ My heart was racing and I lost the feeling in my legs. I regained my composure as I turned to the fight. "Here you go, Celtic Guardian! Kunai with Chains!"

A flying boomerang that was made of metal and sharp as a sword came out of the card and wrapped its attached chain around the Rose Tentacles. I grabbed the chain after it bind the monster and its tentacles. Celtic Guardian seized the opportunity and stabbed the plant's head and it disappeared in a flash of light.

"N-No way…!" Akiza stuttered.

I thanked Celtic Guardian before he vanished into thin air. I approached the girl and said, "That was fun. We should do that again, but… not in a populated area." The plaza's ground was bust opened with dirt exposed, the fountain had a crack, and the people must have head for the hills.

Akiza became defensive. She took a step back with her arms in front of her like a shield.

"Hey, I'm not going to bite or spank you. I just want to talk." I put on a gentle smile that I used on children and it seemed to work as the burgundy girl lowered her arms. "When I heard those boys were trying to do something to you, I was thinking like 'I should call Sector Security as soon as things escalates further'. Boy, you prove me wrong. Though your method was… extreme."

"Shut up. Those guys are annoying."

I chuckled. "Yeah, I could do the same thing if I were in your shoes. But I'm telling this because Sector Security will arrest you! You should be more careful. How will your parents react when they heard that you got arrested for 'self-defense'?"

"They don't care," Akiza grumbled.

 _Did I step onto a landmine?!_ I hid my panic underneath the gentle smile as if my life depended on it. "I'm sorry that I offended you or anything. I'm a little concern because you're a young girl with powers like that."

"Whatever." She walked passed me with her head down.

I looked at her back and sighed. "Hey!" I shouted. "If you want to talk, I lived in the apartment with a huge clock on top! Come visit anytime you want, okay!"

I wasn't sure that she was listening as she walked away. Then I looked at the plaza and how damaged it was made me shuddered in thought of that girl's power.

 _How am I going to explain this to Sector Security if they show up? Should I say that the "Fountain's pipes suddenly burst"? Nah, they won't believe that._

"Kokoro!"

I heard Toby's voice and I turned around with a smile. "Hey, Toby. How was school?"

"It's fine, but what happened here?"

I explained to him what happened earlier. He was shock when I told him the part of the three boys ganging up a girl, but when I told him about the girl summoning a monster to fight back, he nonchalantly spoke, "They got what they deserved." I asked him if he knew who that girl was.

Toby nodded his head. "Yeah. That girl's name is Akiza Izinski and she was pretty famous—or infamous—for harming people through her psychic powers. There were rumors that she took down ten Duelists at the same time and that her parents put her in Duel Academy because they were afraid of her."

"She has it rough," I commented with a slight guilt tugging my heart. "Well, I'm sure she'll do fine. She won't cause that much trouble, will she?"

"Don't worry, Kokoro! I'll keep an eye on her for you!"

"I see your enthusiasm from knowing another Psychic Duelist in your school. Wait… how come you didn't befriend her?"

Toby's cheeks became red as apples, fingers pushed together, and his eyes weren't at me. "Well… that's because… um… she's hard to talk to."

 _She is…? Oh yeah, she does look like an emo kid without the black colors. Why am I imagining her as a goth girl?_ I pinched my nose bridge and shook my head to get rid of that image.

"Also, her girl fans don't like having the boys go near her."

"She has fans already! Isn't today your second day of school?"

"It goes to show that her fame caught people's interest."

 _Are the boys here that pathetic that made the girls go crazy for the same gender?_ I sighed. "I'm not going to judge what people love, but I will say that I don't understand the new generation these days. Well, since we're near home, want to start your training?"

"Really?!"

I nodded my head, which made him happy. After picking up my Duel Runner, we returned to the apartment. Unbeknownst to us, we didn't know that someone was watching in the shadows. It would become my mistake for lowering my guard, but that was for another time.


	15. Tag Duel

Disclaimer: I had no idea where was I going with the previous story. I quickly remake it into a mini tournament for some reason.

Chapter 14: Tag Duel

It was a Sunday morning and I was driving my Duel Runner to New Domino's community park. There was a sign on the entrance near the parking lot that said, "Kame Game's Duel Monsters Tournament! Come here today!" After leaving my ride, I walked inside until I reached the area where I saw a hundred or more people under shade like trees and portable tents.

"This is a crowd!" Dark Magician Girl, in her spirit form, appeared next to me with her hand over eyes.

I looked around and muttered, "Now where's the reception desk…?"

"Hey! Is that it over there?"

Dark Magician Girl pointed at a tent that had a person in it. That person was a girl who, minus the blonde hair, was dressed as the spirit next to me. She was sitting behind a foldable table with a clipboard.

I approached her and asked, "Is the place where I can confirm my registration?"

"Yes," she nodded with a friendly and professional smile. "Did you register online? If so, please show me a printout of your ticket for verification." I showed her the paper that I folded in my pockets and it took her a few seconds of looking at the clipboard. "Kokoro Fernandez, you're on the list. Actually, you're the last one to arrive. Please wait inside tent A."

The receptionist pointed me the direction of that tent and I thanked her. As I was walking through the crowd, my mind wandered into the memories of how I participated this event.

* * *

 _It was after my job interview, Misty came in with a flyer for the Duel Monsters tournament in her hand._

 _She showed it in my face and said, "Participate in this tournament."_

 _"What…?" I tilted my head and grabbed the paper. "Why would I do that?"_

 _"Well, you are going to be bored while waiting for this Chuck person. You need to do something for the time being. Look at the prize there."_

 _I lowered my eyes to the flyer. The first prize for winning the tournament was the five Magician Girl cards and a participation ticket for the King's Cup. I raised an eyebrow and wonder why Misty was showing me this._

 _She explained, "Think about it, Kokoro. There's going to be Duelists who wants to participate in the King's Cup. You can have a taste of what kind of people you'll be facing."_

 _"Really…" A smile floated on my face. "I guess that will raise my interest. Sure, I'll participate."_

 _Misty was relief when I said that. "Good. I already register you without your consent."_

 _"Wait… what?"_

* * *

"I sometimes wonder if she was Kizuna in disguise," said Dark Magician Girl like she was having fun.

"Same here," I groaned. "I feel like both her and mom likes to do things that will get a reaction out of me. What did I do to deserve that kind of treatment?"

Dark Magician Girl placed a finger under her lower lip and looked up at the sky. "I guess it's because your reactions are cute."

"They're… cute?"

"Yeah! It's just like those winter nights five years ago when you summon me for warmth. Your reaction when I hugged you was far the cutest than the time when you wet yourself from seeing the Doll Chimera who was haunting you before."

A vein popped out of my forehead as I spoke in a low volume, "I was ten-years-old at the time… Don't you dare remind me of that…" _I'm lucky that no one can hear Duel Monster Spirits._

Even though I was speaking aloud, my voice was drowned out by the chattering noise of the people around me. Looking at them that no one was darting their eyes, I made a sigh of relief.

I arrived at the tent that I was told to go. Inside were four people: a girl who wore a white dress that was fancy for a rich person, a man who looked like a butler or business man, and a boy whose cyan hair was tied into a ponytail. Their eyes were on me.

The girl spoke in a haughty tone, "Oh, another amateur show up. I was hoping for one to be late. It will save us the time to get closer to the prize. Don't you think so, Albert?"

The butler-like man bowed his head. "Of course, milady. But I think that you should be careful around your opponents."

"That's right!" The boy exclaimed and he seemed to be exuding an aura of burning passion. He pointed his finger at the girl and said, "Don't underestimate me just cause I'm a kid! I'll be the one who will win this tournament!"

"You!" She scoffed. "Please… A cocky brat like you has no chance of winning against me."

There were sparks flying between the girl and the boy that they would set fire in the tent. I glanced at the butler, Albert, who was making gesture of apologizing for her behavior.

"No, that's okay," I said with a smile. Though my eyes were on the cyan-haired boy. _Where have I seen him before?_

"Um, excuse me," a voice spoke behind me.

I turned around and it was a girl who was cosplaying as Lady Heat, but with glasses. I step aside to let her in and she started explaining us about the tournament from reading the clipboard that she was holding.

The tournament would start with a tag-team Duel where the people inside the tent will fight each other until one team wins. Since there were four tents, each with four people, only half would move on. After that it would be single Duels until one wins the final match. It was pretty simple and straightforward. The catch was that the Duels would be happening at the same time with an hour time limit, just to make the tournament quicker. We would have a five-minute break between matches and we could use that time to edit our decks that we were using and drink water and eat food.

The Lady Heat cosplayer fixed her glasses and asked, "Do you all get that?"

We nodded our heads that made her smile. Then the sound of trumpets was playing so loud that the cosplayer told us to go outside.

From there, we saw the Dark Magician Girl cosplayer standing on a platform with a microphone in hand. The crowd became somewhat silent as that girl said, "Hello, everybody and welcome to the Kame Game's Duel Monsters Tournament! I'm your host and owner of the west branch of Kame Game, Narumi!"

The crowd cheered louder that I felt overwhelm by their enthusiasm. I never experienced this kind before since in Satellite was about survival and not much entertainment.

 _Am I going to experience this in the King's Cup?_

I gazed over to the other tents next to me. The other Duelists that I could see ranged from teens to young adults and their smiles didn't show any signs of nervousness. Then I turned my head to my side to see the white dress girl crossing her arms with an inscrutable expression and Albert standing straight with his arms behind his back. For the cyan-haired boy, I noticed sweat dripping down his face and he made a small gulping noise.

Narumi then explained to the audience what we know already and ordered the other cosplayers, the workers, to separate us into teams. The Lady Heat worker was carrying a bowl with four folded papers. We pulled one of the papers and looked at it. I had a one, the boy had a two, the girl had a three, and Albert had a four.

The Lady Heat said, "Okay! One and two, you are a team. Three and four, the same. We'll give a brief three minutes for you guys to get to know each other. Good luck, everyone."

As soon as she left, the white dress girl took Albert behind the tent. She must be really happy that she was working with someone she knew.

"Hey!" The boy called for my attention. "My name is Leo! Nice to meet you!"

"Hello, I'm Kokoro." We shook each other's hands. "I used a Spellcasters and Warriors deck. What deck are you using?"

Leo smiled with a question, "Why should I tell you?"

I answered, "It's because we're force into a team and we're total strangers. If you want to stay in this tournament, we need to work together. We can't win if one of us don't cooperate. I mean look at those two over there." I pointed at the girl and Albert who were chatting in a friendly manner.

"Ugh… Good point." He reluctantly got it as he made an expression that someone had hit his head. "I'm using a Morphtronic deck."

Morphtronic… They were an archetype of transforming machines (sort of) with weak attack and defense strength. They made up that weakness with special effects that boosted their power and special summoning more monsters, which made them versatile for anyone's playstyle. But having great abilities would be their Achilles' heel when an opponent took away them with cards like Skill Drain that negated their powers. They also had a hard time when the opponent overwhelmed them with stronger monsters on the early turns unless the owner added in good defense cards.

"Well, it's a start," I spoke as I placed my hand under my chin. It made him angry that he mistook my words that I was mocking his cards, but I corrected him. "No, I'm just thinking how our cards play off with each other since we have different strategies. Oh well, we just have to wing it, I guess."

I looked over the crowd one more time and the many people here made my heartbeats louder that I couldn't hear their voices. My left hand was shaking a little that I had to held it to stop.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Leo asked as he tugged my sleeves.

I reassured him with a smile. "It's nothing. I'm just nervous since this is my first time Dueling in a crowd this big."

"Really? Your weird. To me, this is normal."

 _Then why were you sweating earlier?!_ I sighed heavily. "Don't worry, I won't let this nervousness to affect our Duel. I'll just ignore them as much as possible."

That was when the three minutes were up. Narumi and her workers brought out large screen with the participants' names on it. The following was like this:

Group A – Kokoro and Leo vs. Hime and Albert

Group B – Matt and Travis vs. Alice and Hibiki

Group C – Hayate and Nagi vs. Ryu and Ken

Group D – Jesse and Rathie vs. Shotaro and Phillip

We walked to our designated area that had signs with those four letters. The crowd was pumped that their cheers became howls and airhorns. Leo and I stood in front of our opponents and we readied our Duel Disks.

The white dress girl, Hime, spoke, "This will be easy. You guys have bad luck coming against us."

"It's more like we're assign to be here," I rebuttal. "But let me say this: no matter who wins or loses, let's have fun, okay?"

"I agree!" Leo raised his hand like a little kid that he was.

Albert joined in the conversation with a polite bow. "I also agree. Milady, I think you should learn from them. Please have fun while playing the game."

"A-Albert!" Hime gasped. "W-What are you saying? I need to participate the King's Cup to achieve my dreams!"

Their banter was interrupted when Narumi's voice came out of the speakers. She said, "Duelists! Are you ready? Let me hear you say, 'Yeah'!"

"Yeah!" We all shouted.

Narumi nodded her smiling head. "Good. It's time to Duel!"

Kokoro and Leo's Life Points: 8000

Hime and Albert's Life Points: 8000

Hime started first as she drew a card from her deck. "You two will never beat me. I summon Destiny Hero – Celestial!"

Falling from the sky was a man red and black spandex. The wings on his back was shaped as a clock that was split apart. He leered at us like he wanted to kill. Hime ended her turn with a facedown card that appeared behind her hero.

Destiny Hero – Celestial: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 1600 DEF: 1400

Leo's turn and he drew a card from his deck. "Time to show everyone what I can do," he said with a smirk. "I summon Morphtronic Celfon!"

A giant flip phone appeared in front of him. That mobile phone transformed into yellow robot with the screen split onto his shoulders.

Morphtronic Celfon: Level 1, Earth

ATK: 100 DEF: 100

"Then I activate Celfon's ability! While in attack position, my monster can randomly select a number from one to six. Whatever number it landed, I can draw cards of that number until I find another Morphtronic monster and summon it. Let's go, Celfon!"

The numbers on Celfon's chest were flashing like a roulette in a casino. It moved so fast than my eyes could blink. After four seconds, it slowed down until it stopped at four.

Leo jumped like a happy kid. He pulled out four cards and looked at them. He picked one and placed it on his Duel Disk. He shouted, "I summon Morphtronic Magnen in defense mode!"

Appearing next to the cell phone robot was a giant magnet. It floated above the boy's head like it was an item that the gods have given to the mortals.

Morphtronic Magnen: Level 3, Earth

ATK: 800 DEF: 800

After sending the remaining cards back into the deck and shuffling it, he ended his turn with one facedown card. That card appeared behind Celfon who raised his fist and hop like a boxer in a ring.

Albert made a small chuckle. "Splendid, my boy," he said as he drew a card from his deck. "I summon a monster facedown and I end my turn by setting a card." Two cards appeared in front of him and he stood straight with a smiling face.

I glanced at the crowd and my hand shook a little. My heart was beating a bit, but I settle it down when I took deep breath. I drew my card. "I discard one from my hand to special summon The Tricky in attack mode!"

The Tricky appeared in front of me as he was juggling his knives. He stopped juggling and took a moment to bow like a gentleman and continue what he was doing.

The Tricky: Level 5, Wind

ATK: 2000 DEF: 1200

"Since he is a spellcaster, I can sacrifice him to summon Blizzard Princess!"

The Tricky was encase in ice in a blink of an eye. The giant ice cube shattered into pieces and stood in front of me was a teenage girl. She wore a white mage's robe with blue outlines and a tiara on her ice-like hair that diamond-shape crystals dangling like pig-tails. Her weapon was a staff with a chain attached to a ball of ice that was large as a wrecking ball. She smiled like a sweet girl that she was, but exuding a murderous aura that send shivers to any survivalists like me.

Blizzard Princess: Level 8, Water

ATK: 2800 DEF: 2100

I could hear the awes and gasps from the crowd. There were murmurs, but I couldn't hear them from the distance where I was.

Leo shouted, "That's amazing!" His eyes were sparkling like he was staring at toy that he wanted in a store.

Then Blizzard Princess's ability activates as she twirls her heavy weapon over her head. She swung her huge ball of ice down at the ground to create a shockwave and their facedown spell and trap cards were encased in ice. Seeing that caused Hime's eyes and mouth widened.

"W-What happen to my facedown cards?" Hime asked.

Albert explained, "It's Blizzard Princess's ability. On the turn that she is summoned, she can freeze our facedown cards for the remainder of the turn. In other words, she seals our defense against her."

A smirk came on my face as I ordered Blizzard Princess to attack Hime's Destiny Hero. She swung her weapon again and her ball of ice hit Destiny Hero – Celestial at his stomach. And for comedic effect, he was sent flying into the sky like he was a homerun baseball. I ended my turn after I placed one facedown card behind the princess. Also, their facedown cards thawed out of the ice.

Hime and Albert's Life Points: 8000 – 1200 = 6800

Hime glared at me for a second until she regained her composure and flipped her long onyx-black hair like an arrogant girl that she was. "You're pretty good," she said. "It seems like I have underestimated you. Now I'm going to get serious!"

 _Um, weren't you serious earlier?_ I scratched my cheek and refrained to comment that.

She drew her card and took a moment to look at her hand. "This will do… I summon Destiny Hero – Drilldark!"

The ground shook like it was an earthquake. Coming out of the earth via drilling was lanky man in black and red armor that had drills for a weapon, fingers, and waist.

Destiny Hero – Drilldark: Level 4, Dark

ATK: 1600 DEF: 1200

"When Drilldark is summoned, I can special summon another Destiny Hero from my hand, but that hero must have less attack points than him. I summon Captain Tenacious!"

Coming out from that same hole was man who looked like a wild animal because of his ferocious face and long orange hair. He had no shirt that he showed his muscles and abs. He had two giant shields that were really pointy that it would be spears strapped on his arms.

Destiny Hero – Captain Tenacious: Level 3, Dark

ATK: 800 DEF: 800

Then she activated a field spell called Dark City. The morning sky became night within five seconds, the ground became a stone road, and buildings, though flat, popped up from the ground. It looked eerie with the buildings being black and glowing yellow windows.

Hime darted her eyes to Albert and he nodded his head. He said, "I flipped my facedown monster up. It's Man-Eater Bug!"

The card flipped and a giant insect came out. It looked like something out of horror movie that would freak out any people who had bug-phobia.

Man-Eater Bug: Level 2, Earth

ATK: 450 DEF: 600

Albert spoke, "My insect's ability activates. I can target one monster on the field and destroys it. The target I pick is Magnen!"

Leo and I gasped as we watch the insect jumped at the floating magnet. It chewed on the metal and ripped it apart like it was soft bread. Magnen was no more after the giant bug made a loud burp.

Hime pointed her finger at Blizzard Princess and declared, "Drilldark! Attack her Blizzard Princess!"

"Are you stupid?!" Leo exclaimed. "Your monster is weaker than hers! Aren't you supposed to be better than us?"

The rich girl laughed arrogantly. "I guess an amateur like you can't understand the idea to take down the strongest. Also, Dark City increased my Destiny Hero's attack points by one-thousand."

Destiny Hero – Drilldark: ATK: 1600 + 1000 = 2600

Leo scratched his cheek. "Even so, he's still weak! You're just wasting your time!"

"That's why I activated this trap card! D-Chain! This trap gives Drilldark a boost in his attack points by five-hundred and it acts as my hero's equipment. That's enough to kill the princess, isn't it?"

Destiny Hero – Drilldark: ATK: 2600 + 500 = 3100

Blizzard Princess swung her ball of ice at the hero, but his drill pierced through and stabbed her chest. His motion was like a punch and she was gone like shattered glass.

Kokoro and Leo's Life Points: 8000 – 300 = 7700

Destiny Hero – Drilldark: ATK: 3100 – 1000 = 2100

"Not bad," I said with a smile.

That was when I noticed something poking out of the ground in front me. It came out super-fast that I could barely registered the sharp object hitting my chest in time. I saw a chain went through my chest. I was glad that it was a hologram, otherwise it would be traumatizing for me to see this experience. It disappeared and I noticed that our life points went down.

Kokoro and Leo's Life Points: 7700 – 500 = 7200

"W-What just happened?" Leo asked as he too was surprise of what just happened.

Hime explained, "That is D-Chain's other effect. If my hero defeated his opponent, the owner of that monster loses five hundred of their life points." Then she set her eyes on Leo as she declared, "Captain Tenacious attacks your Celfon!"

The wild man charged at the robot cellphone. He looked vicious as a hungry wolf.

I quickly reacted by activating my trap card, Magic Arm Shield. A shield appeared on Celfon's arm. The shield's face opened up and toy arm stretched out of it. It grabbed Man Eater Bug and pulled in front of Captain Tenacious who had kill it by stabbing him with those sharp shields. Despite that I used another monster to protect Leo's Celfon, we still took damage from that action.

Kokoro and Leo's Life Points: 7200 – 350 = 6850

Leo sighed in relief. "Thanks, Kokoro!"

"No problem," I replied.

"Not bad," Hime spoke with a small smile. "But I wonder how long are you two going to last. Oh well, I end my turn."

I turned to Leo who was pumped that he drew his card out of excitement. "Awesome! I summon Morphtronic Scopen!"

A giant microscope appeared in front of the boy. It then transformed into a robot with tentacle-like arms coming out from the neck, I think.

Morphtronic Scopen: Level 3, Light

ATK: 800 DEF: 1400

"I activate Scopen's ability! I can special summon a Morphtronic monster from my hand. The only downside is that I have to destroy it by the end of my turn, but it's worth it for the plan to win this Duel! I summon Morphtronic Radion!"

A giant radio appeared next to Scopen and it transforms into a robot. He used an antenna as a sword and pointed the tip at Drilldark.

Morphtronic Radion: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1000 DEF: 900

"There's more! Radion, in attack position, can boosts all my Morphtronic monsters' attack points by eight hundred!"

Radion had play some pop music in his speakers and all the robots on Leo's side were glowing in a rainbow color.

Morphtronic Celfon: ATK: 100 + 800 = 900

Morphtronic Scopen: ATK: 800 + 800 = 1600

Morphtronic Radion: ATK: 1000 + 800 = 1800

I nodded my head and I spoke, "Not bad, Leo."

"Is it?" Leo was embarrassed by my compliment.

However, Hime wasn't impress. "You boosted your monsters' attack points, so what. They are still weaklings."

Albert interjected, "Don't be so hasty, milady. You're forgetting that boy still has Celfon's ability. If he picked up that certain card, then we're in trouble."

Leo did what Albert was expecting. Celfon randomly selected the number two and he pulled out that number of cards from his deck. He looked at the cards for a few seconds and put them back in and shuffled it.

"Seems like we're lucky, milady," said the butler who was happy.

"Whatever! I can just do this! I tuned Radion with Scopen to summon my ace!"

Scopen transformed into three green rings surrounding Radion. Radion became four balls of light and fired a beam that shot up to the moon of Dark City.

"Here we go, everybody!" Leo raised his hand. "He's a monster with some major motor as he fights to protect the weak! Here comes my ace, Power Tool Dragon!"

Flying down from the sky was a mechanical dragon that was yellow as a bumblebee. Its right arm was a blue shovel from a construction machine and its left had a green jackhammer. It moved his head towards me and his tinted-pink lenses were staring straight at my face.

Power Tool Dragon: Level 7, Earth

ATK: 2300 DEF: 2500

Morphtronic Celfon: ATK: 900 – 800 = 100

"H-Hey, Leo!" I called out. "Why is your dragon looking at me?"

"Huh?" He looked at his dragon. "Now that you mention it... This is weird… He never does this before."

The way this mechanical dragon was looking at me was creepy. I was hoping Dark Magician Girl, Silent Magician, or any other Duel Spirit would help me out, but they didn't come.

Leo continued his turn while ignoring this situation. "I activate Power Tool Dragon's special ability! I pulled out the top three Equip-Spell cards from my deck and I need you, lady, to pick one for me to keep!" He held the cards in his hand and waved it.

Hime pointed her finger at her target without any hesitation. "I picked the one in the right!"

Leo's eyes sparkled as he sent the remaining two in the shuffled deck. "Nice choice! I get to use this one! I equip your Drilldark with Megamorph! This card will either increase or decrease the equipped monster's attack points, depending on our life points. Since we have more life points than yours, Drilldark loses half of his attack points!"

Destiny Hero – Drilldark: ATK: 2100 – 800 = 1300

"Now I revealed my facedown card, Kunai with Chains! I equip it to Power Tool Dragon and he gain five hundred attack points!"

The rod of the jackhammer had been replaced by a bladed boomerang. The dragon pointed its new weapon at our opponents.

Power Tool Dragon: ATK: 2300 + 500 = 2800

Leo declared that his dragon attacks Drilldark. The dragon swung its arm and the boomerang was sent flying at the hero. I looked at Albert, but he didn't seem that he wanted to stopped the attack. The weapon had hit its target, killing him into shattered glass.

Hime and Albert's Life Points: 6800 – 1500 = 5300

"I placed one card facedown and switch Celfon to defense. End turn."

Celfon transformed into a cellphone as a card appeared behind him. I found it weird to see a giant floating above the ground.

It was Albert's turn and he drew his card. "It's our standby phase now and I activate Captain Tenacious's ability! If a Destiny Hero was destroyed in battle while he was around, I can bring that hero back onto the field. Return to us, Drilldark!"

Drilldark came out of the ground after drilling another hole. He looked really mad as he was staring at us that send shivers down my spine. I turned to Leo and it seemed like he wasn't affected by the intimidation as he tilted his head.

"By the way, do you remember Drilldark's special ability when he was summoned by milady?" He asked.

"You got to be kidding me," I uttered those words.

He nodded his head. "That's right, I can special summon a Destiny Hero too. Unfortunately, I don't have one in my hand currently."

I sighed in relief. Though that kind of feeling didn't last long.

"I pay fifteen hundred of our life points to activate the Equip-Spell card, Autonomous Action Unit! I can revive any monster from your graveyard and we can use it as our own. I'm bringing back the lady's Blizzard Princess!"

Hime and Albert's Life Points: 5300 – 1500 = 3800

A giant block of ice appeared in front of Albert's side. It shattered and came out Blizzard Princess who saw me and happily waved her hand. Then she noticed the Power Tool Dragon and Celfon on our side of the field and turned to the right and saw the Destiny Heroes. She gasped in shock and lowered her head with water coming out from her eyes.

By the way, he set down a monster next to her. He ordered Blizzard Princess to attack Power Tool Dragon. Before that action happened, he revealed his facedown card, Reinforcements. It gave her a five-hundred attack boost for the duration of the turn.

Blizzard Princess: ATK: 2800 + 500 = 3300

Blizzard Princess, reluctantly, swung her weapon at the mechanical dragon who swung its boomerang to counter. When the boomerang and ball of ice clashed, it was the bladed weapon being destroyed. Power Tool Dragon still stand as it slowly stared at Blizzard Princess who was still crying.

Kokoro and Leo's Life Points: 6850 – 500 = 6350

Power Tool Dragon: ATK: 2800 – 500 = 2300

Leo explained, "Power Tool Dragon used its other ability. If he has been equipped by a card, that equipment is the one destroyed instead of him."

"That is true," said Albert as if he was praising him. "However, Drilldark is still up to attack. And since Dark City is still in play, he gains one thousand attack points."

The power-up Drilldark jumped up in the air that the full moon was behind him. He dived down with his drill fist aiming at the robot dragon's head. The impact broke the dragon into pieces and disappears.

Kokoro and Leo's Life Points: 6350 – 300 = 6050

"Captain Tenacious is last," he said with a polite smile. "Go and attack Celfon."

The wild Destiny Hero ran at the floating cellphone. He swung his shielded arm and broke the device into pieces before disappearing. Leo fell on his butt when that happened.

I asked, "Leo, are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah," he answered as he got up. "T-That just surprise me."

Albert ended his turn after he placed a facedown card that appeared behind Blizzard Princess.

Blizzard Princess: ATK: 3300 – 500 = 2800

I drew a card from my deck and looking at the card made me smile that I used it. It was the spell, Pot of Greed, and I drew two more cards that I needed. They were spell cards. The first was Giant Trunade, a spell card that returned the spell and trap cards on the field into their owners' hands via giant tornado. The storm blew away Dark City, thus returning us to the park, and Blizzard Princess nowhere in sight. The second was Card Destruction that forced us to discard our hand and drew the same number of cards that we got rid of.

Hime was sulking as she turned to Albert with her saying, "I don't like this…"

The butler nodded his head. "She must be plotting something."

Leo scratched his head. "Kokoro, I'm lost. What are you doing?"

"I'm just winging things here, okay," I replied. "And it's a good thing that I did them because I can see our victory. I used Monster Reborn to revive the Dark Magician from my graveyard!"

A purple magic circle appeared behind me and coming out of it was the Dark Magician in his purple mage's outfit. His arms were crossed over his chest and his eyes were intimidating. He raised one hand and brought out his staff.

Dark Magician: Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2500 DEF: 2100

"While I'm at it, I summon Queen's Knight to join the fray!"

Appearing next to the Dark Magician was a woman in scarlet armor. Her golden hair was flowing in the air like a cape. She raised her sword and shield as her eyes stared at our enemies.

Queen's Knight: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1500 DEF: 1600

I ordered them to attack the Destiny Heroes. Dark Magician fired a black lightning bolt from his staff that hit Drilldark to the chest and he was turned to ashes. Queen's Knight was fighting Captain Tenacious who was using his shields to block her sword swings, but she was able to stabbed him in the stomach and it made him shattered like glass. I end my turn as I felt accomplishment for my actions.

Hime and Albert's Life Points: 3800 – 1600 = 2200

Hime clicked her tongue. "I don't like this kind of push that you're making, lady."

"My name is Kokoro," I said back. "Pushing others is one of my favorite past times. Let me see how you get out of this one."

"Really…" She smirked. "Challenge accepted."

Albert had a handkerchief and he was wiping away the tears that were streaming down his cheeks, though he was still smiling.

Hime drew a card from her deck and she smiled. "I have met the conditions that I need. I used Polymerization to fuse together Destiny Hero – Plasma and Destiny Hero – Dogma!"

A swirling portal appeared over our heads. Flying into that hole were two demons. As soon they entered, lightning came striking down the ground around us and they hadn't hit the crowd. It was like a crazy light show or a party.

"A hero who craves blood… And a hero who have fell from grace… Let them become the one who will end their destiny. Rise with your new power, Destiny End Dragoon!"

Coming out of the portal with red lightning was a huge man… no, a terrifying monster. He wore a maroon armor that had a dragon's head as a chest piece. His bat-like wings were too wide to be a cape and his tail was touching the ground. His shield on his left arm looked like another dragon's head that would eat someone's head. He pointed his right arm at me and a blade came out of the back of his wrist, trying to intimidate me.

Destiny End Dragoon: Level 10, Dark

ATK: 3000 DEF: 3000

I felt like I was a hero meeting the Demon King in a fantasy-adventure game. I could imagine how big his murderous aura would be if he were summoned by my hands or a Psychic Duelist's.

Hime snapped her fingers. "I used Destiny End Dragoon's ability! I can destroy your Dark Magician without going into battle and when that happens, you take damage equal to your magician's attack points!"

Destiny End Dragoon was looming over the Dark Magician. He raised his dragon head shield like he was pointing a gun. A ball of fire came appeared in its mouth and was shot out like a cannon. The fireball hit the Dark Magician and he was turned to ashes. Hime ended her turn just like that.

Kokoro and Leo's Life Points: 6050 – 2500 = 3550

"This Duel is cutting close," Leo spoke as he drew his card. "I pay eight hundred of our life points to use the Equip-Spell, Premature Burial to revive Power Tool Dragon!"

The ground shook with cracks appearing in front of the boy. Breaking out of it was Leo's ace monster, Power Tool Dragon.

Kokoro and Leo's Life Points: 3550 – 800 = 2750

"There's more to it! I equip him with Double Tool C&D! This spell card gives my dragon a power boost of one thousand!"

Power Tool Dragon had its arms replaced with a buzz saw from the shovel and drill from a jackhammer. There were buzzing sounds coming from its new weapons that made me remember the terrifying times that I went to the dentist for cavities.

Power Tool Dragon: ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300

Leo then activated his dragon's special ability to pulled out the top three Equip-Spell cards from his deck. Hime picked the middle card, which made him smile. After putting away the two leftovers into the deck and shuffled, he used that card on Power Tool Dragon. It was the Equip-Spell, Power Pickaxe. A pickaxe that was colored orange and had a rocket engine appeared as a part of its tail.

I asked, "Leo, what does that card do?"

"I'm glad you ask. Power Pickaxe allows me to banish one Monster card from my opponent's graveyard. When that is done, my dragon gains five hundred attack points. The card that I'm banishing is your Drilldark!"

Power Tool Dragon swung its pickaxe-tail at the ground. Coming out was the selected Destiny Hero and he was absorbed inside the mechanical dragon.

Power Tool Dragon: ATK: 3300 + 500 = 3800

He ordered his robot dragon to attack Destiny End Dragoon. With the power of its drill, it was able to pierced through the armor. Hime's monster tried to used his blade to retaliate, but the dragon was too fast that the weapon was an inch close to its neck. Destiny End Dragoon vanished in particles of light.

When the coast was clear, Leo ordered Queen's Knight to end the Duel with a direct attack. Seeing her charging with her sword raised in the air, there was no reaction coming from Hime; she had her eyes closed and small smile floated on her face. The blade passed through her right shoulder to her left waist like a ghost and the Duel was over.

Hime and Albert's Life Points: 2200 – 2300 = 0

The crowd was cheering really loud around us. I had forgot about them because I was too focus on the Duel. Leo was happy that he won the Duel that he waved his hands at the audience. I did the same thing, but with one hand and a small smile.

Hime and Albert were walking up to us. She flipped her hair and said, "I have to admit that you guys have skills and my arrogance got the better of me."

"But you have fun, right?" I asked and she nodded her head.

"I want to participate in the King's Cup, but it seems like I still have a long way to go."

"There's always next time."

"That is true, Ms. Kokoro. The next time we see each other, I will defeat you."

Then Leo jumped in the conversation. "Hey, what about me? I beat you too!"

Albert answered, "Of course milady will be including you, but you are the same as her. Still in need for improvement."

"Huh? What do you mean?" He tilted his head.

Then we heard a roaring cheer coming from Group B. It was there that we saw a giant square that had a bluish circle in the middle. I had seen portals for Fusion, Ritual, and Synchro-Summoning, but that portal was new. The one who summon it was a girl in a biker's outfit.


	16. It's Down to Eight

Disclaimer: If you want to know what happen here, go to chapter 14 for the explanation.

Chapter 15: It's Down to Eight

The biker girl raised her right hand to the square portal that three monsters were flying towards it. The crowd was restless as they had no idea what was going on.

She shouted, "I have created a circuit that leads to our future! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are that I need at least two effect monsters! I set Cyberse Wizard, Backup Secretary, and Morphing Jar in the Link Markers!"

The three monsters that she called out flew into the arrows outside of the hole. Those glowing red arrows were set as a triangle if I connect the dots.

"Circuit combination! Appear, Link Three, Decode Talker!"

Flying down from the portal was a warrior who looked incredibly futuristic. Its armor was in the darker shade of blue and most of its dark body had glowing purple lines as if he came from a computer. His sword was like something from a science-fantasy movie like Solar Wars.

A smirk floated on her face as she declared, "This Duel is over! Decode Talker! Direct attack!"

The futuristic warrior flew straight at the opponents. He swung his laser sword at the two and they fell on their knees. Like as she said, the Duel was over and the holograms disappeared.

The crowd was speechless. Their mouths were opened wide and I bet some were dropping their popcorns. Someone gulped broke the silence and everyone cheer that could be heard at least a mile away.

While this was happening, my group and I couldn't believe what we had saw. Hime gasped, "What was that summoning?"

Albert shook his head. "I don't know, milady. If it that summoning is illegal, it will be notified to Sector Security. However, I didn't see any officers coming."

"That was awesome!" Leo jumped out of excitement. "I want to try it!"

I didn't say anything. My eyes were focused on the biker girl.

She looked like a teenager wearing a dark leather jacket, a shirt that was white as papers, jeans that were loosely-fitting to her slender legs, and leather boots that matched her jacket. Her face was serious because of her sharp eyes and her raven hair reached her shoulders. The Duel Disk that she was using was an old model, possibly from the Battle City era.

After she pushed away a little girl in a lavender dress from hugging her, her eyes locked onto me and approached me. She had her arms crossed under her breasts with a smile and said, "I don't like it when someone is giving me such an intense stare like that."

 _I was giving that kind of stare…?_ I coughed. "I'm sorry. I was just curious about that summoning you did earlier."

"Oh, you mean Link Summon! I understand why then because that kind of summoning don't exist here."

"Here? Where you come from?"

The biker girl chuckled. "Sorry, I won't be giving that information. If you want it, you have to Duel me."

I felt a chill ran down my spine. The fighting spirit that she was exuding had a hint of killing intent. If she were an experienced warrior, she would draw a knife near my neck without my notice.

That feeling subsided when she placed her hand on my shoulder. "Not now, though. We still have a mini tournament to go through."

"R-Right," I spoke.

"Oh yeah, my name is Hibiki Aria. What yours?"

"I-It's Kokoro, Kokoro Fernandez."

"Kokoro, huh." She nodded. "That's a lovely name. Well, good luck in the tournament. I hope we can face each other in the semi-finals at least."

We shook hands for a brief moment and she walked over to the table that were serving drinks and snacks. I stood where I was, ignoring the crowd that were watching the other Duels that were still going on. My hands were trembling, but not from fear—from excitement. I clenched them into fist and a fiery smile was on my face.

Silent Magician appeared in her spirit form and said, "Link Summon… Boy, talk about déjà vu."

"You know what that is?" I asked. "Also, where were you and the other Duel Spirits?"

"We were busy with the rescue mission back in the Spirit World. Also, about that new summon… I don't know. It's just that seeing that reminds me of Sora who used Synchro-Summon before it becomes a thing."

"Though seeing that… I want to Duel her."

She sighed heavily. "Just be careful. We don't know who that girl is."

"I know."

When I went back to the area that I came from, I noticed that Hime and Albert were missing and Leo was talking to a… clone? There was another kid who looked like him with the cyan hair, face, and height. The only differences were the scarlet shirt under his coat, which Leo's was darker blue, and the pigtail hairstyle.

 _Am I dreaming?_ I pinched my cheeks and it wasn't.

Silent Magician spoke, "There is a rational explanation. That person could be his twin."

"Oh, that's right." I hit my left palm with a fist.

She rolled her eyes. "Not sounding like a broken record here, but I feel like your family always act clueless just to mess with people."

I ignored her commentary and approached the two. "Hey, Leo! Who are talking to?" I asked.

"This is my sister, Luna," he answered. He turned to her and said, "I told you to stay home. What happen if _that_ happen again?"

Luna replied, "I'll be fine, Leo. Besides, if I leave you alone, you'll probably be way too excited that you end up losing."

"T-That's not true! I won my first Duel!"

"Which was a tag-Duel and I being your partner," I interjected.

Luna turned her head to me. "You were partnered with him? I'm sorry if he became a handful."

"He can be a little, but I have experience with kids like him. By the way, I will like to properly introduce myself. I'm Kokoro, nice to meet you."

"My name's Luna, nice to meet you too."

We shook each other's hands. As soon as our hands touched, I felt a warmth coming from her. It felt a bit similar like it was from a long time ago. Then I noticed she was staring at me.

I asked, "Is something wrong?"

"I-It's nothing. Actually, I felt like we had met somewhere before."

"Really? Same here, but where?"

The two of us looked at each other for a moment. After we searched through our memory, we shrugged and shook our heads.

"Can't recall anything," I said.

"Same here," she responded.

"You two are weird," Leo made a remark that sounded rude.

Luna darted her eyes toward her brother. She was exuding some kind of demon that wanted to kill him.

Leo noticed his sister's cold and distant eyes and he sweated a bucket load. He apologized for his behavior.

Seeing their little exchange made me giggled. "It's nice to have an older sister like her. Right, Leo?"

"But she's not older!" Leo exclaimed.

I was confused by that statement. Judging from my observation, Luna was acting the responsible adult while Leo was acting like a little kid whenever he was excited. I was confident that she was the older one in the sibling hierarchy.

However, Luna corrected me. "He's right. I'm actually his younger sister."

"Really!?" I gasped in shock. "But you acted way too responsible for his childish behavior. I guess I should never believe in those stereotypes."

I noticed that my tongue was a bit dry. I told the twins that I would going to get myself a drink and they followed since they too wanted one. We walked to the table where a worker dressed as the Cold Enchanter, which was a white-light blue mage's outfit with an icy-colored tiara. She offered us cups of ice-cold water and we took a sip.

It was a pleasant feeling that the dryness in my mouth was gone. The liquid that slid down my throat and into my stomach had cooled down the warmth that was built.

Then the speakers had Narumi's voice spoke, "The Tag-Duel was over! The remaining Duelists who won their match will take their five-minute break."

When the announcement was done, I decided to talk to the two children. "So, do you live anywhere near here?"

Luna answered that she and her brother lived at a penthouse of some hotel in the Tops' area of New Domino City. It was shocking to hear that because they didn't give out the impression that they were rich kids. They also told me that their parents' work was what helped them to be in that lap of luxury.

"What about you, Ms. Fernandez?" Luna asked. "Where do you live?"

"I live in an apartment at Fountain Plaza," I answered. "By the way, you can just call me, Kokoro, like your brother did."

"Okay, Kokoro!" She happily said.

 _Such a sweet girl!_ I smiled. She reminded me a lot of the kids back home that a boulder was weighing in my heart. _Great, I'm feeling homesick already…_

"Hey, Kokoro, are you okay?" Leo asked.

I shook my head. "It's nothing. I'm just thinking about a lot of things. Anyway, Luna, do you play Duel Monsters?"

She nodded her head. "Yeah, but I only play with Leo and some of our friends."

"She's pretty good," Leo spoke. "We Duel against each other and we have few wins and losses. Though I'm in the lead in wins."

Leo did a pose that he was boasting on his victories. I glanced over to Luna who was shaking her head with a cringed expression. I made a small laugh that I wasn't sure that I was amused or did that as a response.

Then Narumi made her announcement through the speakers. She announced that they had finish randomizing the eight Duelists of who they should be Dueling. We walked to the screen and saw the following:

Group A: Jesse vs. Alice

Group B: Ryu vs. Kokoro

Group C: Hibiki vs. Ken

Group D: Leo vs. Rathie

"When the break is over, please go to the area with the letter signs. That is all." The speakers were turn off and the chattering from the people continued.

I crossed my arms under my chest and said, "This is interesting. It makes sense to separate the partners because they already know what kind of cards they will use and it's not fun."

Leo couldn't contain his excitement that he was stomping the ground. "Kokoro! Let's face each other in the finals!"

I nodded my head in response. "Just remember to have fun, okay."

Suddenly, I felt an ominous presence looking at me from a faraway distance. It had killing intent, but not at the level as Hibiki's. I could compare this feeling to a group of dogs searching for food in night. I turned around, but I couldn't tell who was giving me that feeling from the large amount of people. Then that ominous presence disappeared. I held my sigh of relief because that presence would show up anytime soon.

Then our break time was over as Narumi ordered us to our Duel area. I went to the area with the B sign and I met my opponent.

Ryu was a burly man who wore a headband that was colored as blood. He wore a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to show off his muscles, blue cargo pants, and wooden clog slippers. His Duel Disk had stickers of flags from different countries. He had his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes were closed like he was the master of a dojo.

He then opened his eyes as soon as I got close. "So, you're my opponent?" he asked. "Judging from the way you walk, you are nervous but you exude an aura of an experience warrior who have gone through many hardships."

"You can tell that much?" I raised an eyebrow.

He lowered his arms and firmly bowed his head. "My name is Ryu," he said. "Now show me your fire as a warrior."

"Weird pick-up line," I joked. "I'm Kokoro. Please show me a good time."

The crowd was cheering that made my heart beating erratically. I looked at Ryu and he was way too calm to be in "center" stage. The warmth raised a little that a sweat was dripping off the forehead. The wind blew that my hair flew like a cape.

Narumi's voice came out of the speakers. "Duelists! Are you ready? It's time to Duel!"


	17. Magicians

Disclaimer: This Duel was short and I couldn't think of a better title for this chapter.

Chapter 16: Magicians

Ryu's Life Points: 4000

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000

"Ladies first!" I drew my card. "I set down a monster and place two cards facedown. End turn." I dripped a sweat as three cards appeared in front of me.

Ryu took a step out, drew his card, and said, "This is the heart of battle. I summon Tiger Axe in his fighting position."

Appearing next to Ryu was burly tiger man who was dressed as a bandit from a fantasy story. He wore an iron breastplate that was polished for light to be reflected by the sun's rays. The tiger man brandished his giant stoned axe that looked like it would do more than chopping off heads.

Tiger Axe: Level 4, Earth

ATK: 1300 DEF: 1100

Ryu ordered his Tiger Axe to attacked my facedown monster. When that tiger swung his axe down, the monster revealed to be Marshmallon.

Marshmallon: Level 3, Light

ATK: 300 DEF: 500

Since Marshmallon couldn't be destroyed in battle, the pink gelatin-like monster absorbed the axe chop and bounced it away. Then it happened. When Marshmallon was revealed in battle, Ryu's life points would by one-thousand. The axe was swung to Ryu as he used his arm to block, despite the fact that it was a hologram and it passed through his body.

 _What a serious guy…_ The corner of my smile twitched.

Ryu's Life Points: 4000 – 1000 = 3000

He ended his turn with a facedown card that appeared behind Tiger Axe. His serious face was unchanged and a bit intimidating, though it wasn't directed at me.

I shook off the intimidating aura that he was exuding and drew my card. "I summon my trusty Silent Magician to be my sword!"

A light blue magic circle appeared next to Marshmallon. Coming out of that circle was the little Silent Magician. She tipped her hat and pointed her staff at the tiger barbarian.

Silent Magician Level 4: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000

Then I ordered my little mage to attack Tiger Axe. Silent Magician flew straight to the tiger man with the tip of her staff sparking electricity. To some people, they would think that it was a dumb move, but Ryu didn't think so.

He said, "Interesting choice."

"I activated my trap card, Magician's Circle! If a spellcaster attacks or is attack in battle, we can special summon a spellcaster from our decks. However, our mages need to have attack points equal or under two-thousand. I pick out the Dark Magician Girl!"

A pink magic circle appeared in front of Silent Magician, causing her to stop her attack. Dark Magician Girl came out of it and hugged the little mage. I could see her growling at the blonde woman as if she was hating by this kind of action. Also, Ryu didn't summon a magician like me.

Dark Magician Girl: Level 6, Dark  
ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700

Dark Magician Girl put down Silent Magician and petted her head. Silent Magician knocked her hand away as I ordered the little spellcaster to not continued the attack and she came back. Then Dark Magician Girl tagged in to attack Tiger Axe. A pink magical ball appeared on the tip of her staff and she fired it to the tiger who had used his weapon as a shield. It didn't work and he died in ashes; however, Ryu didn't take any damage.

He explained, "I activated the trap card, Defense Draw. Any battle damage that I receive reduce to zero and I get to draw one card."

"Okay then… But since you draw a card, Silent Magician gains a counter and five-hundred attack points from that counter! And I end my turn from that."

Silent Magician's Counter: 0 + 1 = 1

ATK: 1000 + 500 = 1500

Ryu drew his card and that increased my Silent Magician's attack.

Silent Magician's Counter: 1 + 1 = 2

ATK: 1500 + 500 = 2000

Then he started talking to me as he asked, "Miss, why are you entering this tournament?"

"Huh? That's a random question. I'm here for a good challenge."

It sounded a bit true. I was in this tournament to understand my type of competition for the upcoming King's Cup. I wanted to say that, but I felt like I would be kicked out if I do. Remembering the reason why I was in the tournament, made me lowered my head with a slight of guilt floating on my face.

"I see…" He nodded his head. "You like the adrenaline of competition. You're the type who wants to keep fighting until you feel satisfied."

"What are you? A psychologist?"

"No. I'm just analyzing what kind of character you are."

Silent Magician and Dark Magician Girl turned their heads to me with smirks floating on their faces. I knew what they were going to say.

"He got you there," they both said in unison and that irritated me.

That was when Ryu resumed his turn. "I use the spell, Ancient Rules to special summon Judge Man."

A burly old man who dressed as a bishop (I think) appeared in front of Ryu. He opened his violet cape to revealed that he was brandishing two big maces with spikes.

Judge Man: Level 6, Earth

ATK: 2200 DEF: 1500

"While I'm at it, I bring out his female counterpart, Ms. Judge!"

A female bishop appeared next to Judge Man. She wielded two signs that an O and an X. I had a feeling that she should be in a game show of some kind.

Ms. Judge: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1800 DEF: 600

"Judge Man executes your Dark Magician Girl!" Ryu declared.

Judge Man approached Dark Magician Girl and he was looming over her with great intimidation. He brandished his maces and swung them against her head.

However, I stopped that attack as I said, "You activated my trap card, Threatening Roar! This card prevents you to attack for the rest of your turn."

A powerful lion's roar came out of the card behind Silent Magician. It was so loud that it deafened our monsters' ears. Me, Ryu, and the audience weren't affected by this.

"I will not allow that!" Ryu shouted. "I activated Ms. Judge's special ability! If you activate a card effect, before resolving it, I flip a coin. If the results are two heads, your trap card's effect will be negated!"

The two signs from Ms. Judge's hands glowed until a giant quarter coin appeared in the middle of the field. The coin flipped once and it was heads. Flipped again and heads. Ms. Judge nodded her smiling head and raised her O sign that fired a beam that pushed back the roaring shockwave until my trap card was gone. Judge Man resumed his attack and killed Dark Magician Girl like he was shattering glass. Ryu ended his turn by setting a facedown card behind Judge Man.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000 – 200 = 3800

"Kokoro, we need to take down Ms. Judge!" Silent Magician shouted.

"I know that," I muttered as I drew my card. "I use Pot of Greed to draw two cards from deck. Then I attack your Ms. Judge with Silent Magician!"

Silent Magician twirled her staff with a determined expression. The staff was charging blue magical lighting in its tip. "Let's go! Magic Sparking!" she declared and fired that lightning at her target.

Ms. Judge used her two signs to defend herself, but the attack hit the top of head. She then exploded with the sound effect being smashing glass.

Ryu's Life Points: 3000 – 200 = 2800

"Time to add in an extra defense by setting down a monster." A card appeared next to Silent Magician. "While I'm at it, I sacrifice Silent Magician to special summon Silent Magician!"

Everyone became silent when I said that.

Silent Magician glowed in a bright light and transformed into her adult form. However, it was the one who had the dress showing her hips. Her cool and mature look had made some men to howl like wolves, but she ignored them and flipped her silver hair.

Silent Magician: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000

"Another version of that little mage," said Ryu. "Though it was confusing when you say that. I thought you are going to summon her level eight form."

I chuckled. "You'll be surprise even more because Silent Magician gains five-hundred attack points for every card in my hand. I have three, so do the math."

Silent Magician: ATK: 1000 + 1500 = 2500

Just as I was about to end my turn, we heard a roaring cheer coming from Hibiki's Duel. She was doing her Link Summon as that portal appeared in the sky.

"I have created a circuit that leads to our future!" Hibiki shouted. "Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning condition is one Normal Monster card! I set Bitron in the Link Marker!" A small robot ball that was glowing light blue flew into the down arrow. "Circuit combination! Appear, Link One, Link Spider!"

Coming down from the sky was a robotic spider that belonged to a robot fighting competition or a post-apocalyptic movie where advanced technology ruled the world. Then Hibiki showcased her spider's ability that brought back her little robot. I also noticed that she had four monsters on her side of the field.

"Alright! One more time! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are two or more Monster cards! I set Bitron, Link Spider, Cyberse Wizard, and Backup Secretary in the Link Markers!" The four monsters went into the up, down, left, and right arrows. "Circuit combination! Let's go, Link Four, Firewall Dragon!"

Flying down from the sky was a white dragon. Its wings and head had blue symbols that belonged from a digital space in virtual reality.

Hibiki ordered her dragon to attack her opponent's monster, Gemini Elf (though shouldn't that be "Elves" since they were two in one monster). The blue symbols on the white dragon became red and it fired a red beam at the two elves, turning them into ashes.

Seeing that made me gasped, "That is so cool…"

"I also admit that is impressive," Ryu spoke.

"Kokoro…" I noticed that Silent Magician was glaring at me. "Hurry and end your turn already. We're on a time limit here."

 _I don't need you to remind me of that!_ I end my turn with that kind of thought.

Ryu drew his card and took a moment to look at his hand and the field. He ordered Judge Man to attack the facedown monster. The big bishop swung his mace at the set card and it revealed to be an ancient jar with a one-eye monster known as Morphing Jar.

Morphing Jar: Level 2, Earth

ATK: 700 DEF: 500

Morphing Jar's flip-effect activated before it was dead. We discarded our entire hand and drew five new cards. This added more power to Silent Magician. Ryu ended his turn after setting down two cards behind Judge Man.

Silent Magician: ATK: 2500 + 1000 = 3500

I drew my card and then I felt a chill running down my spine again. I quickly looked around the crowd, but that shiver disappeared as soon as I did.

"What's wrong?" Ryu asked.

"I-It's nothing." _Get it together, Kokoro! This is not Satellite! Don't be so paranoid all the time!_ I shook my head and slapped my cheeks to regained my composure. "I summon Tune Warrior!"

Tune Warrior appeared next to Marshmallon. He hit his two rods like drumsticks, trying to be intimidating.

Tune Warrior: Level 3, Earth

ATK: 1600 DEF: 200

I then performed a Synchro-Summon with Marshmallon and Tune Warrior. My Tuner Monster became three green rings around the pink monster who turned to three balls of light. A beam fired into the sky and coming down was Gaia Knight, the Force of Earth. His horse neighs manacling like he wanted to kill someone.

Gaia Knight, the Force of Earth: Level 6, Earth

ATK: 2600 DEF: 800

"Gaia attacks your Executioner!" I declared.

"Judge!" Silent Magician yelled to correct me, but that didn't matter.

Gaia charged at Judge Man. His lance was about to hit the target, but an invisible wall blocked the attack. Ryu revealed his trap card, Mirror Force. The wall shattered into glass shards that flew into my knight and magician, killing them in the process.

"With that, you have no way to attack my monster," said Ryu.

I smirked. "Don't be too sure. Silent Magician's special ability has been activated! If she is destroyed in battle or card effect, I can special summon another Silent Magician from my hand or deck. The magician I'm bringing in is Silent Magician Level Eight!"

A light blue magical circle appeared in front of me. Coming out of it was the adult version of Silent Magician with a confident smile on her face.

Silent Magician Level 8: Level 8, Light

ATK: 3500 DEF: 1000

"Wait… You can't ignore this Level Monster's summoning condition like that," he pointed out.

"That is because of the other Silent Magician's ability. It does ignore those conditions." It was really weird explaining with about my monster's ability because of names were similar. "Anyway, Silent Magician attacks your Judge!"

Silent Magician fired a light blue magical beam from her staff and it hit Judge Man's chest. The big man shattered into pieces.

Ryu's Life Points: 2800 – 1300 = 1500

"You're a tough opponent," said Ryu as if he was praising me. "Win or lose, I can gain something from this."

"That is true," I replied. "At least I have fun from this Duel. I end my turn, so give me your all."

He smiled and drew his card. "I reveal my facedown card, Call of the Haunted! Now I bring back Judge Man!"

Popping out of the ground like a zombie was his declared monster. He breathed out smoke to showed off his intimidation or was going into a wild frenzy. Then he summoned Torapart, who were two small jester-like monsters that were balancing on a wooden disk.

Torapart: Level 2, Dark

ATK: 600 DEF: 600

Then he tuned Judge Man with Torapart to perform a Synchro-Summon. A beam fired into the sky and coming down like a meteor to the ground was a giant white robot that looked futuristic compared the Ancient Gear Golem. That monster was Colossal Fighter.

Colossal Fighter: Level 8, Earth

ATK: 2800 DEF: 1000

"Colossal Fighter's ability kicks in. He gains one-hundred attack points for every Warrior in our graveyards. I have three, how about you?"

"F-Four," I pouted. I had Tune Warrior, Gaia Knight, Queen's Knight, and Obnoxious Celtic Guard in my graveyard.

Colossal Fighter: ATK: 2800 + 700 = 3500

He ordered the giant robot to attack Silent Magician. Colossal Fighter punched her, while my magician blocked it with her staff. They clashed for a second or two and then they exploded in a bright light. The field was covered in a thick smoke.

"Colossal Fighter's other ability activates. I can revive any Warrior monster from the grave. And the one I'm going to bring back is your Gaia Knight!"

The smoke cleared and appearing in front of me was Gaia Knight and his horse. They were showing their animosity toward me with the clopping noises. Talk about a betrayal of an ally as Ryu ordered him to attack me. Without any hesitation, Gaia hit me with a charging lance attack and the lance passed through my stomach. It wasn't real, but I did lose a lot of my life points.

Kokoro's Life Points: 3800 – 2600 = 1200

"Now then." Ryu took a foot out in front. "Can you draw a card that will defeat this monster?"

"That is a good question." I smirked and drew my card. "Well, here it is! I pay half of my life points to use Dark Magic Curtain! This spell allows to special summon the Dark Magician!"

A skeleton with a crimson curtain for a lower body float in-between us. He pulled it open and came out the Dark Magician and his stare made Gaia Knight to step back.

Kokoro's Life Points: 1200/2 = 600

Dark Magician: Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000

"Dark Magician attacks Gaia with Dark Magic Attack! During this battle, I activate the special ability of the Apprentice Illusion Magician! By discarding her into the graveyard, my Dark Magician gains two-thousand attack points!"

A spirit of a younger Dark Magician Girl who had tan skin appeared next to the Dark Magician. She placed her hands onto his staff and poured in pink magical energy into it.

Dark Magician: ATK: 2500 + 2000 = 4500

Dark Magician fired a ball of dark magic at Gaia and his horse. It was like an electric shook that killed them and ended the Duel.

Ryu's Life Points: 1500 – 1900 = 0

The people cheered as the holograms were turned off. I pumped my right fist in the air with a smile of accomplishment on my face.

"That is a good Duel," said Ryu who approached me. "You're a tough opponent. I have nothing to blame but myself."

I lightly punched his arm. "There's always room for improvement."

"Aw, man!"

We heard another voice shouting behind me. The owner was a burly man, same as Ryu, but with golden rat-tail hair. He wore a dark shirt and scarlet jeans.

Ryu recognized him as he gasped, "Ken!"

"Hey, Ryu. How was your match? Did you win?"

He shook his head as his answer, which made him to chuckle a little.

Ken said, "Well, I lost too. Man, her unknown summoning really gives her the edge."

I looked away from them and had my eyes set on Hibiki. She was stretching her back and drinking a cup of water. Her smile was bright and proud that made my blood boil to challenge her. While I was doing that, Ken and Ryu continued talking.

"Ryu, what are you going to do now?"

"I should continue on my journey to become a better Duelist."

"Sweet! We should stop by the card shop and buy some packs! I'm not letting my friend here to not improve his deck!"

The two guys went off somewhere. Seeing them gone made me go see Leo's Duel; he had his Power Tool Dragon while his opponent had a Cyber-Tech Alligator. I noticed Luna amongst the crowd and I walked up behind her.

She didn't seem to notice me as I poke her shoulder for her attention. "Kokoro!" she called out my name with a smile. "How's your Duel?

"I win." I winked. "How's your brother doing?"

"See for yourself."  
Leo drew his card and said, "Power Tool Dragon's special ability activates! Now select which of these three Equip cards that I should keep!"

His opponent, Rathie, picked the left card. It turned out to be Megamorph. Since Leo's Life Points were lower than Rathie's, Power Tool Dragon's attack points doubled and it was already equipped with Double Tool C&D. Rathie was taken aback of this development that he fell on his butt.

Power Tool Dragon's drill and Cyber-Tech Alligator's claw clashed against each other. The drill proved that it was powerful enough by piercing through the metal arm and created a hole on the alligator's chest. The robo-lizard fell on the ground and disintegrated into thin air, ending the Duel.

The holograms disappeared, leaving Rathie collapsing to the ground on his hands and knees. Leo was jumping, happy that he won his second match.

"Congratulations, Leo!" Luna clapped with a big smile on her face.

Leo gave her a peace sign, but then noticed me standing next to her. "Hey, Kokoro! Did you see my victory? What do you think?"

I nodded my head. "I just got here, but I have to say that is awesome. But your next opponent is _her_ of all people." I pointed at Hibiki who was watching the last match that was going on.

Leo's body trembled, a wiggly smile floated on his face, and clenched his hands. He was excited to face someone who had Duel Monster cards that we haven't seen before. Luna was shrugging her shoulders and shook her head as if she couldn't believe how childish that her brother had become.

"Don't get too excited, Leo," I said. "We don't know what kind of cards she is using; besides the fact that she can Link Summon."

"Link Summon?" Luna gasped out a question.

I crossed my arms under my chest and replied, "Hibiki didn't give me much information about it. However, judging from her summoning method, I say that Link Summoning a monster requires some kind of conditions. She has been saying something about summoning conditions."

"Really!" Leo's eyes twinkled like stars. "Awesome! I can't wait to Duel her!"

 _Were this kid's nerves gone out the window? He should be nervous!_ My jaw was hanging down as I held those thoughts from escaping my vocal chords.

Then the last Duel was over and it was a girl named Alice that won. The screen behind Narumi showcase the semi-finalists in the following:

1 – Alice vs. Kokoro

2 – Hibiki vs. Leo

"Attention, everyone!" Narumi spoke up in the speakers. "We're heading to the semi-finals and I will explain shortly about this new change. Instead of Dueling at the same time, these two Duels will be taking turns. Starting with number one, Alice vs. Kokoro!"

I turned to where Alice was and our eyes met. She looked like grade-schooler in a lavender dress. Her hair was long and bright as gold and her skin was pale as the clouds. At first, I thought she was innocent, but for some reason I had this uncomfortable feeling about her. I decided to let it slide and continued to listen Narumi talking.

"We'll be going in our five-minute break! Until then, rest up, contestants! Who will win the prize of the Magician Girl cards and the King's Cup's participation ticket? Who knows!"

Her announcement was over. She had a lot of energy to make it sound exciting and the crowd was definitely pumped. They were cheering very loud that I almost gone deaf.

 _The semi-finals, huh._ I looked at my deck and muttered, "What course of action shall I do?" That question made my heart to feel conflicted like a weight that was chain to it.


	18. Halloween Special: Doll Haunt

Disclaimer: A short special made in the last minute. Not good at making horror.

Halloween Special: Doll Haunt

Satellite. It was a city that I wouldn't recommend living. The buildings were in ruins, the people were savages (I think), and ten-year-old Kokoro was digging through the trash inside an abandoned building.

"Wow! Look guys! I found a perfectly intact muffler!" Little Kokoro held a large steel engine pipe in arms. I found it cute to be honest.

However, Silent Magician, who was floating next to me, wasn't amused. In fact, she had a worried expression. "Kokoro, put that thing down! You never know if there's any cockroaches inside!"

Kokoro stick out her tongue. "No way, Silent Magician! I cannot throw away this!"

"She's right," I spoke with an amused tone. "Silent Magician, you need to loosen up a bit. She's just a kid, you know."

"Dark Magician Girl…" The white little mage glared at me. "Don't talk to me about taking it easy, when this girl needs discipline! It's all because Kiz—!" She paused when she realized what she was about to say.

We turned to Kokoro and she had a grim smile with an aura of loneliness. It panged my heart to see that kind of face on a child. I wanted to hug her so badly!

Kokoro noticed our reaction shook her head and regained her composure. "I-It's fine, girls. Let's not talk about it okay."

Silence. The atmosphere became awkward.

I broke the ice. "It's your fault, Silent Magician."

"My fault!?"

"You have to bring out _her_ at a worst time. Now you have to make up for it by allowing her to keep that muffler!"

"… Argh… Fine! She'll keep it!"

Hearing that had brightened Kokoro's day as she smiled like a little kid that she was. She stuffed the muffler inside her backpack and continued digging through the pile of garbage.

Silent Magician made a heavy sigh and commented, "Look at her. She's like a little kid in a candy store."

I looked around the building and replied, "She is a little kid… and we're inside a candy store."

Then Kokoro found something interesting that she showed it to us. It was a plastic doll of a girl in a scarlet dress and raven hair. It looked damage with its body covered in dust and grime, the left eye was missing, and the dress ragged. Silent Magician and I eyed each other and we nodded in agreement that it was too creepy.

Kokoro, on the other hand, looked at us with puppy-dog eyes and asked, "Can I keep her? Please…"

I couldn't sense any malicious intent from that doll and I shrugged it off. "Just let her keep it. It's only a doll."

Silent Magician nodded her head in agreement, which made her happy. Kokoro jumped for joy as she tossed and caught the doll.

"Be careful!" The white mage yelled.

I placed my hand on her shoulder to calmed her down. "Let her have fun, okay. She's still a kid and let her be a kid."

"I guess I should." She had her arms over her chest with a small and calming smile on her face.

Then Kokoro stopped jumping for a second. She turned her head to us and asked, "Do you guys say something?"

"Huh? Like what?" I replied with a question.

"I thought I heard someone saying, 'Let's be friends' or something like that."

"We didn't say anything like that," Silent Magician shook her head.

Kokoro's eyes widened in shock. She then started muttering something that we couldn't hear and then tell us that we should returned back to hideout. That was when things gone paranormal than usual.

* * *

It had been a week since Kokoro found the doll. Each passing day, things happened that made her lose sanity. Parts for her Duel Runner broke, her blankets tore into shreds, and writings on the wall that were red as blood. The writings were creepy on these listed days:

Day one: "One, two, I'm coming for you."

Day three: "Three, four, I watch the floor."

Day five: "Five, six, no more sticks."

Day seven: "Seven, eight, check your date."

Seeing these abnormal activities, Silent Magician and I appeared to check on her. However, we saw Kokoro hid under her last sheet of blanket, trembling in fear.

"Are you okay?" I asked out of concern.

"Who! What! Don't come near me!"

That wasn't the response that we were expecting. I was speechless that I had no idea which words that would calmed her.

Silent Magician had an idea as she slowly approached her until she was in hugging distance. "It's okay, Kokoro," she soothed her. "Everything's alright. Nobody is going to hurt you."

It worked since Kokoro calmly came out of the blanket. While Silent Magician was acting like a parent to her, I turned to the scarlet doll that was sitting at a corner of a wall. I asked her why she put the doll like that.

That caused Kokoro to shake like she was experiencing an earthquake. She explained that she pieced together that all of the strange paranormal activities happened whenever she saw this doll near the scene. At first, she thought nothing of it, but things kept happening with the doll next to them. Kokoro tried to smash it with a hammer, but her body became paralyzed when she attempted. She was already at wits' end.

"Then how's about we destroy it," I suggested. "Summon us and we'll do the job for you."

Silent Magician rained on that parade. "It's just a doll. Not only that, we didn't even sense any evil coming from that thing."

"Are you saying that she's crazy?"

"From an outsider's perspective, she is crazy because of us!"

"Whatever happen to you about being cautious?"

"Last week! You had to make me to feel guilty, so she can escape my discipline!"

Our argument was interrupted from Kokoro screaming that would pierce our ears. We saw her being held down by a giant mannequin monster with four arms and legs like a spider. I noticed that the doll wasn't sitting in the corner.

"A Doll Chimera!" Silent Magician gasped in shock.

"Huh… How come we didn't notice that?" I asked nonchalantly.

Kokoro struggled to break free from the doll's grip. "Let me go! Silent Magician! Dark Magician Girl! Help!"

"No one is going to help you," said the Doll Chimera and she sounded like a sadistic sociopath.

"Who are you? Why are haunting me?"

"Isn't it obvious? It's because you save me out of the garbage. I want to show you my appreciation."

 _She sounded like a crazy stalker…_ My smile twitched a little. I wasn't sure if I should be enjoying Kokoro's torment or tried to take action.

"I was so lonely… I miss the warmth of another person holding me… No one is going to take you away from me." The Doll Chimera had her hands covering Kokoro's mouth to stifled her screaming.

A swirling portal of darkness appeared out of nowhere. It looked incredibly terrifying, especially with violet smoky snakes flying across the hole. It was the portal to the Shadow Realm.

"Silent Magician! We need to save her!" I shouted desperately.

"How can we when we're like this?" She yelled back.

That was when we became solid from our spirit form. It was because Kokoro was so terrified of what was happening to her that she subconsciously releasing her power. The two of us nodded our heads and attacked the Doll Chimera.

The doll monster was surprise that we were blocking her path. I used the Spellbinding Circle to froze her in place. Silent Magician used magic to enhanced her staff's power and swung it the chimera's arms, breaking it apart like it was a hammer. Kokoro was pulled out of the enemy's grip by the white little mage and dragged her away.

"No…! My precious friend…! I will not be alone again!"

I moved behind the Doll Chimera's back with a dark ball of energy appeared on the tip of my staff. My eyes narrowed at her as I spoke, "Yeah, yeah. You'll be alone anyway."

"I'll kill you, you liar!"

"It ain't no lie. Bye, bye, bye. Burning Magic Attack!"

I fired the dark magic ball at the Doll Chimera and she was sent flying into the portal. She tried to pull herself out by clinging onto the portal's entrance, but a small pink lightning bolt came out of my staff forced her to let go. Her scream echoed into our ears.

With Silent Magician's help, we were able to sealed the portal of the Shadow Realm for good. It disintegrated into thin air like it wasn't there to begin with.

"Is it okay for us to ruin someone else's happiness?" I asked Silent Magician.

"What are you talking about? She was dragging a little kid to her death! Kizuna will hate us if we let that happen!" She lowered her head and spoke calmly. "But you were on the right. Kokoro will grow out of playing dolls and will forget about the doll that she picked up. It would only fuel that chimera's craziness."

Kokoro sobbed and sniffled as she was on her knees. It was because of this experience, she was afraid to any dolls and mannequins that had a human appearance.

"Kokoro, it's okay," Silent Magician soothed her again. "The evil doll monster is gone for good. There's no need to cry."

That was when we noticed a puddle appearing underneath her legs, soaking her knees and short pants. Silent Magician and I knew how terrified she was from that sight. It was an event that blossom an odd feeling inside me that wanted to tease her so badly.


	19. Semi-Finals 1

Disclaimer: This was supposed to release before the end of November. I would also probably put up the Christmas special before the end of January or February (depending on my situation).

Chapter 17: Semi-Finals 1

The semi-finals were about to start with me and Alice. I sat inside the tent with the remaining three contestants who were doing their own thing to passed the time. The clock said that we had three minutes of free time left, it felt like hours being dragged along. I was bored that I eavesdropped on the chattering crowd behind me. Though the topics that I heard were more boring than me waiting.

There were two women talking about their dates with their boyfriends and were trying to one-up against each other of whose date was better. A teenage couple discussing about their homework that was given to them in Duel Academy. Lastly, three elderly gentlemen were doing "Back in my day" stories to each other and I find that a bit interesting even though they were long-winded.

"Hello!" A cheerful voice yelled near my ear that it was trying to pierce my eardrums.

It was Alice who was leaning her face near my cheek. Her twinkling violent eyes were staring at me like a curious kid, which she was, of a new toy being displayed in a store.

"H-Hey t-there," I stammered. The energy that Alice poured into that greeting caught me off-guard. "I-Is there something you need, Alice?"

"You say my name," she spoke.

I was confused of why said that. "Y-Yeah. Your name was display in the versus screen earlier."

"Oh, that's right!" Alice lightly hit the top of her head with a playful wink and a tongue sticking out of her smiling mouth. She then had her hands together on her back and swayed her waist. "But you say my name and that made me happy. Thank you, Kokoro."

"Uh… sure." _What's the deal with her?_

I noticed that her cheeks were tinted red as cherries. I averted my head away from her and looked at the costumed workers preparing the Dueling Stage. It seemed like they were done putting away the extra stuff that were in the way.

That was when Narumi took on center stage with her microphone in hand and a cheery smile on her face. "The semi-finals are about to begin! Please cheer for our first contestants, Kokoro and Alice!"

I got up from my seat and walked out of the tent with Alice following behind. The audience made a deafening cheer. We moved to our position until we were looking at each other at a fair distance for a Duel. Our Duel Disks were on and we were shuffling our decks in preparation. Five cards were drawn into our hands after the preparation was finish.

Narumi continued, "These two, along with the other remaining contestants, are here to win the ticket to become part of King's Cup! After overcoming many tough opponents, they are here now! Let's see who will take the next step to achieving the grand prize! Is everyone ready?"

The crowd made a roaring cheer. I nodded my head. Alice raised two of her fingers to do a peace sign.

"Okay! It's time to Duel! Game on!"

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000

Alice's Life Points: 4000

I started the Duel by drawing a card from my deck. "Fight for me! Queen's Knight!" I declared.

Queen's Knight appeared in front of me. Her golden hair flowed along the wind and her unsheathed blade reflected the sun's light. She took a stance that had her shield covering her torso like she was ready for a fight. Then I end my turn with a facedown card appearing behind her.

Queen's Knight: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1500 DEF: 1600

Alice was trying to hold in her excitement as she kept stomping the grass. "Okay! I summon Cyber Harpie Lady in attack mode!"

A shadow was looming over my head. I looked up and saw a scarlet-haired woman with bird-like wings and talons as her arms. Her armor, while covering her ample chest, was revealing compared to Queen's Knight's armor. She flew down to ground level and pulled out her thorny whip from back. With a flick of a wrist, her whip hit the ground and gave off a dominating aura because of her sexy, yet sadistic, face.

Cyber Harpie Lady: Level 4, Wind

ATK: 1800 DEF: 1300

"Okay! Watch me, Kokoro!" Alice waved her hand to me.

"Uh… sure…" I replied with an eyebrow raised.

The little girl ordered her Harpie Lady to attack Queen's Knight. She swung her arm to create a fast momentum for her whip to fly and wrapped around the female knight's arm. The winged lady tried to pull my knight to her side, but she didn't budge. In fact, it became a tug of war between them.

"I revealed my facedown card, Reinforcements!" I declared as my trap card flipped up. "With this, my Queen's Knight survives your attack!"

Queen's Knight: ATK: 1500 + 500 = 2000

Alice wasn't disturbed by the sudden power boost. Her smile was unwavering and her eyes were sparkling.

 _Did I fell for her trap!?_ That gasped pop out of my head.

It seemed like it to me. Queen's Knight try to pulled the Harpie to her, but the same was for the enemy. That was when I saw an emerald aura emanating around from talon feet to her scarlet hair.

"I boost Harpie Lady's attack points by one-thousand, thanks to Ego Boost!" Alice pulled out a spell card from her hand and insert it into her Duel Disk.

Cyber Harpie Lady: ATK: 1800 + 1000 = 2800

With all her might, Harpie Lady pulled Queen's Knight that send her flying towards her. She jumped up and crushed my monster's head with her talons like a watermelon. My knight struggled, but when that happen, she became limp and died into particles of light. It looked too gruesome that I heard a ton of squeamish noises from the crowd.

Kokoro's Life Points: 4000 – 800 = 3200

Cyber Harpie Lady: ATK: 2800 – 1000 = 1800

Alice gasped in surprise and looked at the people around us. With a playful smile on her face, she said, "To the people who can't handle the gruesome violence as we seen here, please cover your eyes and ears as this kind of violence will increase as this Duel goes on! Thank you for listening to this disclaimer!"

 _Isn't that a little too late for that?_ I kept that remark to myself and I bet everyone thought the same thing.

"Anyway, I end my turn with this one card facedown," she said and a card appeared behind her Harpie Lady who was stretching her whip like she was checking its durability.

I nodded my head and drew my card. "I activate Silent Doom to bring back Queen's Knight in defense mode."

A hand appeared over my hand. It tossed a glowing ball of yellow-amber down to the ground. Breaking out of it was Queen's Knight who was on her knee with her shield covering her body.

"I then sacrifice her to summon the Dark Magician Girl!"

A pink magical circle appeared underneath Queen's Knight and she was absorbed into it. Coming out of it was Dark Magician Girl and she waved her hand to the audience who was cheering and whistling at her. There were even several men who were howling like wolves.

Dark Magician Girl: Level 6, Dark

ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700

Then I ordered Dark Magician Girl to attack the Harpie who looked really smug for killing Queen's Knight earlier. She charged up a dark energy attack into her staff, but Alice revealed her facedown card.

"Sorry, but No Entry! This trap switches our monsters' position to defense mode, thus your battle phase ended!"

The energy that was stored in her staff disappeared and Dark Magician Girl had her knees touching the ground. As for the Harpie Lady, she covered her body with her wings. I gritted my teeth and ended my turn after placing a facedown card behind my golden-haired magician.

Alice drew her card and took a moment to looked at the four cards in her hand. She reminded me of Midori when she was looking at my cards because of their pretty designs. A smirk appeared on her face as she said, "I summon Harpie Lady 1 to join in!"

Flying down from the sky was another Harpie Lady that looked like Cyber Harpie Lady, but without the armor and whip. She wore a violet bikini over a tight bodysuit to covered up her skin. Looking at the two Harpies side-by-side made me think about the artist behind them.

Harpie Lady 1: Level 4, Wind

ATK: 1300 DEF: 1400

"By the way, Harpie Lady 1 has a special ability that increases the attack points of all Wind-type Monsters by three-hundred."

When she mentioned that, the no-armor Harpie Lady generated wind around her. It caused the Cyber Harpie Lady broke out of her cover and whipped the ground.

Cyber Harpie Lady: ATK: 1800 + 300 = 2100

Harpie Lady 1: ATK: 1300 + 300 = 1600

Alice ordered Cyber Harpie Lady to attack Dark Magician Girl. She flicked her wrist to send her whip flying toward her. However, the whip missed and grazed her shoulder by an inch.

I flipped up my facedown card. "Not so fast! Go! Magical Hats! I select two non-Monster cards from my deck and placed them, along with Dark Magician Girl, facedown. Then I shuffled them and you have to pick which one is her. How good is your luck today?"

The two cards that I picked were Brain Control and Dark Magic Curtain. Three hats with question marks appeared and my female magician was inside one of them. I set the two cards inside the remaining empty hats and they started to move around at blinking speed.

Cyber Harpie Lady flew up in the air. She moved her head left, then right, and left again. Alice ordered her to attack the hat on the left. She swung her whip at the target and cut it in half, which was weird for a whip to do. The target was revealed to be Brain Control and it shattered into pieces. The Harpie Lady gasped in shock.

Alice didn't seem to be upset as cocking her head like she was confused about something. "Darn… I thought I am lucky. Oh well! I end my turn! You go, Kokoro!"

The top of the hat on the right glowed and coming out of it was the Dark Magician Girl. Her reveal made the hats disappeared along with my remaining card.

"Thanks, Kokoro," Dark Magician giggled.

I smiled and drew my card. "I activate Sage's Stone! If the Dark Magician Girl is on the field, this spell allows me to summon her master, the Dark Magician!"

A crystalized stone floated next to the Dark Magician Girl. The stone shattered into pieces and there stood the Dark Magician looking cool with his arms crossed over his chest. He narrowed his eyes at the Harpie Ladies and with a wave of his hand came his staff out of nowhere.

Dark Magician: Level 7, Dark

ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000

Then I ordered my Dark Magicians to attack the Harpies. Dark Magician Girl fired a pink lightning from her staff that flew at Harpie Lady 1. Her body convulsed by the magical shock and she exploded, leaving behind feathers that were scattered on the ground. With Harpie Lady 1 gone, Cyber Harpie Lady, who was stunned to see her ally died, lost her power up. That was when the Dark Magician took that chance and attacked her with his ball of Dark Magic that hit her back. Cyber Harpie Lady fell on the ground and disappeared into thin air.

Alice's Life Points: 4000 – 1100 = 2900

"Not bad, not bad," said Alice who nodded her head with a smile.

It seemed like she was playing me like a fiddle or possibly didn't care about the results. I ended my turn after the battle.

Alice drew her card and looked at her hand with a puzzling face. She was muttering some words, but I couldn't hear it. She seemed to be thinking about her next move to play.

"Do you mind me if I start a conversation?" Dark Magician Girl asked out of boredom.

"Not now," I angrily whispered.

"Don't be rude," Dark Magician spoke. Hearing his voice was a surprise because we rarely talk without my mom being with me.

Dark Magician Girl asked, "What's the deal with Alice? Did you meet her before?"

"Even if you ask me, I don't know," I replied. "Also, she's a little girl! If we did meet before, she shouldn't be this young, am I right?"

"She does have a point," Dark Magician agreed.

"I got it!" Alice exclaimed that caught our attention.

She summoned a monster named Birdface in attack mode. He appeared after the wind blew away the feathers that were left behind. As for his looks, he looked like an actual birdman with sharp talons that would cut me in half. She ended her turn by setting down a card behind her monster.

Birdface: Level 4, Wind

ATK: 1600 DEF: 1600

When I saw her move, my mind went to the idea that she wanted me to attack her. I looked at the cards in my hand and I didn't have anything that would destroy her facedown card. Was it a trap or a bluff to keep me from attacking? I drew a card from my deck and it wasn't the one that would take down her trap, but it was a card that made me smile with a light bulb hanging over my head.

In my battle phase, I attack despite the facedown card. Dark Magician Girl fired a ball of pink magical energy at Birdface. However, the ball hit an invisible wall that was in front of the birdman. That was her trap card, Mirror Force. The wall shattered into shards of glass that flew at my magicians and killed them.

"There go your monsters," said Alice. "But I know you draw a useful card. Can it really make a difference?"

"Let's find out." I set down a Monster card that showed up in front of me and I ended my turn.

Alice smiled out of delight. She muttered some words under her breath. I couldn't make out what she said because she lowered her head to cover her lip movement.

She drew her card and quickly played it. It was Pot of Greed and she drew her two cards. Then she used Cost Down, a spell that cut down two levels of the Monster cards in her hand at the cost of discarding a card. Birdface was replaced by a large crimson dragon that looked ferocious, but not as much as the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Though my eyes were too focused on its head ornament for some reason.

Harpie's Pet Dragon: Level 7, Wind

ATK: 2000 DEF: 2500

Alice pointed her finger at me with a smug smile. "I'm not going to fall for your facedown card!" she exclaimed as she ended her turn after setting a card behind her dragon.

I sighed out of relief. _At least that will give me some time,_ I thought as I looked at my set Monster. I drew my card and, after a quick glanced at it, I played it. "I activate the spell, Swords of Revealing Light!"

The swords of glowing golden light came down from the sky and stuck their blades on the ground between us. The glowing weapons emitted a pulse, indicating that it was producing an invisible wall.

"Until three of your turns ended, these swords stopped your Battle Phase. With that being said, I end my turn."

"Wow, you're just stalling even though you have that facedown Monster there," she said as she drew her card. "Well, that doesn't matter because I'm going to make my dragon strong now. I summon another Harpie Lady 1 from my hand and you remember her power boost for Wind-type Monsters!"

The scarlet-haired harpy flew down from the sky. She stood next to the Pet Dragon and gave it a pet on the head, which made it to purr like a kitten. The Harpie Lady looked at me and gave me a sadistic smile that sent shivers down my spine.

Harpie Lady 1: ATK: 1300 + 300 = 1600

Harpie's Pet Dragon: ATK: 2000 + 300 = 2300

"While I'm at it, let me tell you about my dragon's special ability! For every 'Harpie Lady' on the field, he gains three-hundred attack points!"

Harpie's Pet Dragon: ATK: 2300 + 300 = 2600

"I reveal Call of the Haunted! Now I can revive Harpie Lady 1 to make Monsters even stronger!"

Popping out of the ground was the previously destroyed Harpie Lady 1. The other Harpie Lady helped her up without hesitation.

Harpie Lady 1: ATK: 1600 + 300 = 1900

Harpie's Pet Dragon: ATK: 2600 + 600 = 3200

Alice ended her turn and the crowd cheered loudly.

Swords of Revealing Light: 3 – 1 = 2

I ignored the noise and drew my card. That card was Pot of Greed and I drew two more after activating that spell. I ended my turn by placing two facedown cards.

Alice looked puzzled as she tilted her head. She drew her card and ended her turn.

Swords of Revealing Light: 2 – 1 = 1

"Come on! Where's the action?!"

"They just kept ending their turns without doing anything!"

Those complaints came from the audience. It led to others complaining and booing, but I ignored them. Narumi and the other coworkers tried to calm them down with some effect.

I drew my card. Looking at the card, I wasn't sure that I should play it at this point. I end my turn while looking at the two other contestants who were watching the Duel. Leo seemed to be shaking with his eyes gazing over the Duel. Hibiki, on the other hand, was looking at the Duel as she sat on the ground with a mild expression.

Alice drew her card and started a conversation with me. "Seems like we're in a stalemate at this point," she said.

"Yeah," I replied without thinking. "Why are we having this conversation? Draw a bad card or something?"

"Oh, I do draw a good card. I'm just being a little cautious of your cards there."

"The way you say it sounds like you have analyzed my playstyle or something…"

Alice didn't say anything and smiled with leering eyes.

I felt something intimidating from just looking at that expression. It was enough to shake my heart. Uneasiness. That was what I was feeling.

"I use Shield Crush," she said as she showed me the card that was in her hand. "This spell card allows me to destroy your facedown Monster. At least that's one obstacle to take care of."

My set Monster was shattered like glass. It was revealed to be Marshmallon. Seeing him being sent to graveyard made me grit my teeth.

"Now I end my turn. Thanks to that, your Swords of Revealing Light is officially gone."

Swords of Revealing Lights: 1 – 1 = 0

The golden swords vanished into thin air. The Pet Dragon roared and the Harpies cackled like it was their victory already.

I ignored the noisy crowd and drew my card. I set down that card after a quick glance and end my turn.

"Seems like you have no other options." Alice drew her card. "Don't worry! Win or lose, Dueling is fun!"

I saw her smiling face when she shouted that. I nodded my head while making that same expression.

Alice pulled a card that she was holding in her hand. "Seeing that you have made your resolve, let's finish this. I used Heavy Storm to destroy all our spell and trap cards on the field!"

A huge tornado enveloped our entire surrounding like the audience was covered by a curtain made of raging wind. Alice's Call of the Haunted flew away and the Harpie Lady that was gone along with the trap card. With her gone, her Monsters' power boost was gone.

Harpie Lady 1: ATK: 1900 – 300 = 1600

Harpie's Pet Dragon: ATK: 3200 – 600 = 2600

I saw my three facedown cards fluttering, they were about to fly away. I quickly activate one of them before their destruction.

"The Flute of Summoning Kuriboh! This spell allows me to summon the Winged Kuriboh from my deck to the field in defense mode!"

Winged Kuriboh appeared as soon as my facedown cards flew away. His brown fur and white wings were fluttering in the storm that was slowly dying down. He put up his paws like he was boxer in a boxing stance with eyes being fierce.

Winged Kuriboh: Level 1, Light

ATK: 300 DEF: 200

Alice declared her attack as her Harpie Lady flew at my small monster. She used her talons to slice Winged Kuriboh in half, effectively killing him. When that was done, she didn't order her Pet Dragon to do a direct attack. It was because she knew of Winged Kuriboh's special ability of preventing damage after he was killed.

She ended her turn by happily saying, "This will be your last turn, Kokoro. Make it count."

I drew my card and I looked at it. It made me lowered my hand and head. Seeing me like this would have people think that I was sad, but I wasn't. I was pleased that my own luck ran out.

"It's my win," said Alice.

"Yeah… I end my turn."

She drew her card. "I have fun, don't you?"

I didn't say anything. I gave her smile and looked at her straight to her eyes in an unwavering manner.

Alice summoned another Harpie Lady, but she had short orange hair. With her inclusion, the Pet Dragon gained its power boost.

Harpie Lady 2: Level 4, Wind

ATK: 1300 + 300 = 1600 DEF: 1400

Harpie's Pet Dragon: ATK: 2600 + 300 = 2900

A triangle formation was created with the two Harpies and the dragon's head. Sparks of electricity formed in the ladies' hands and the dragon was charging a ball of fire in its mouth. The three Monsters fired their attacks at me. Loud gasps came from the audience as I was being engulfed in a spiral of fire and electricity. My match was over.

Kokoro's Life Points: 3200 – 6100 = 0


	20. Semi-Finals 2

Disclaimer: Happy New Year! Sorry it took so long for this new chapter.

Chapter 18: Semi-Finals 2

"The Duel is over! The winner is Alice!"

The crowd did a roaring cheer after hearing Narumi's announcement. I deactivated my Duel Disk and I approached Alice who was waving at the audience.

"Oh! Kokoro!" She gasped.

I extend my hand to her and happily said, "That is a great Duel. Hope you can win the final!"

Her face brightened with a smile and her eyes twinkled. She grabbed my hand and shook it furiously. "Thank you so much, Kokoro! I will! I will!"

 _Ow! Ow! Ow!_ I kept my face straight as I felt her strength trying to snap my arm.

We were then told to get off field for the next match by one of the staff. When we walked back to the tent, Leo came up to me with a worried and sad expression on his face.

"Hey, Leo. I lost," I said.

"I know," he replied while keeping that expression.

Leo reminded me of the kids back in Satellite who were upset that I didn't spend anytime with them. It made my heart sunk in guilt that I could feel my stomach twisting into knots.

I swallowed my saliva and petted his head with a reassuring smile. I told him, "We can Duel each other some other time. Come on, don't be sad. Keep your chin up high, Leo. You're in this tournament to win, right?"

"You're right. I will win this tournament for us!"

I was happy that I brought Leo's spirits up. _Boy, am I good at dealing with children!_ I praised myself.

"Now that's the spirit!"

The one who exclaimed that was Hibiki. She was walking up to us with a smile on her face.

She continued, "Sorry for interrupting your little talk. I too notice little Leo being down and thinking ways to cheer him up, but I'm not sure what to say to him."

I raised an eyebrow. "Okay, what is your real reason?"

"Rude, but oh well. I come to congratulate on your Duel. There, I said it. Happy now."

I wasn't convinced by her words, but seeing her carefree smile kind of lessen the tension that I was having with her. I closed my eyes and gave a same expression with a nod of my head.

Then Narumi called in Leo and Hibiki for them to come on stage for their match. They moved to their positions with Duel Disks activated. As they were shuffling their decks, I noticed that Alice was pulling up two folding chairs from the tent.

Alice told me that the standing from before made her legs numb and that she should sit down. She also believed that I was the same as her and offered me the second chair. Didn't want to hurt her kind gesture, I sat on the chair.

Besides the noisy crowd, there was this silence between us. Alice kept looking at me and Duelists in a fidgeting way. It made me wonder if she wanted to start a conversation.

Leo and Hibiki finished shuffling their decks. They exchanged words, which consisted of them sizing up for the battle. Upon Narumi's signal, the Duel began among the sound of the roaring audience.

Leo's Life Points: 4000

Hibiki's Life Points: 4000

Hibiki drew her card and added it into her hand. She looked at her cards with a smile on her face. "Let's start the fun," she said in a tone full of confidence. "I summon Balancer Lord in his attack position!"

Streams of zeroes and ones swirled around like a small tornado in front of the biker girl. They formed into a "solid" figure of some kind of knight, which it was. A silver knight to be exact. He had a futuristic appearance because of the glowing yellow lines on his body. He raised his sword in the air and had his shield close to his face.

Balancer Lord: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1700 DEF: 1200

The crowd made a noise of amazement, which I instinctively did too. "That's a cool-looking monster," I commented.

"There's more." Hibiki playfully winked. "By paying one-thousand of my life points, I can normal summon again another Cyberse monster. It's show time, Cyberse Wizard!"

Hibiki's Life Points: 4000 – 1000 = 3000

A light blue magical diamond appeared on the ground. Various symbols like letters and numbers came out with a glowing male figure. The light broke apart to reveal a leafy-green-haired man in a white mage's outfit that looked like any clothes that could be found in any clothing stores. His staff was an iron rod with four balls connected together by a small hole.

Cyberse Wizard: Level 4, Light

ATK: 1800 DEF: 800

While the crowd were amazed to see the two monsters on the field, I took notice of Hibiki's words.

 _Cyberse_ , was the word that raised my curiosity. _Is that a Monster-type? That's the first I heard of it._

Besides the recent Psychic-type monsters, the types stem from the standard RPG roles like warriors, dragons, robots, spellcasters, etc. Seeing them before my eyes made me think what kind of strength and weakness they have. My left leg was shaking in anticipation.

Hibiki ended her turn after she set a card behind her Monsters. "Now show me what you got, Leo," she said as a taunt, which works.

Leo's face became serious when he drew his card. "I'll show you what I got! I summon Morphtronic Magnen!"

A blue robot that had parts that was belong to a magnet came out of the ground. It did a pose of a boxer readied for a match.

Morphtronic Magnen: Level 3, Earth

ATK: 800 DEF: 800

Then he used Megamorph and equipped it to Cyberse Wizard. It was a good move since the difference between their life points would cut down the wizard's attack points by half. Weakening and defeating the strongest monster on the field was one of the best move to do that.

"That's too early," Alice spoke up her comment. Her tone sounded serious and a little calculative.

I silently agree with her. I knew Leo's deck and its weakness. He wouldn't beat her unless he was able to set up his defenses as fast as possible. My knees were getting wet by my clammy hands.

Cyberse Wizard: ATK: 1800/2 = 900

Then Leo used another Equip Spell on Magnen with Mage Power. It was a spell that increased a monster's attack points by five-hundred for every card in his Spell/Trap Card Zone. He added a facedown card in that same zone to increased his monster's attack points even further.

Morphtronic Magnen: ATK: 800 + 1500 = 2300

He ordered his magnet robot to attack the white wizard. It transformed into a magnet and flew at the enemy like a pseudo-boomerang. However, Hibiki did an interception.

It was a trap card called Nightmare Wheel. A scary wheel with a skull of a giant demonic monster and spikes all over. Chains from the skull came out and caught the flying magnet, dragging it back to the wheel. Leo was shock that his mouth was open wide.

Hibiki spoke, "This trap holds down your Morphtronic robot as long as this card remains on the field. That robot can't attack or change its position."

Leo gritted his teeth as he ended his turn.

Hibiki drew her card with a cool smile. Then at the Standby Phase, Nightmare Wheel's effect kicked in. Leo lose five-hundred of her life points. The chains from the wheel wrapped around his wrist and possibly squeezed it so hard that made to drop his hand. He did pick it up as soon as the effect was done.

Leo's Life Points: 4000 – 500 = 3500

"I activate the spell card, Cybverse Cache. Since my wizard's attack points is lower than usual, I can draw two cards. Next, I summon Stack Reviver! And since I have a Cybverse monster on the field, I can special summon Backup Secretary!"

Two monsters appeared after the zeroes and ones formed their shapes. Stack Reviver looked like a canister with arms. As for Backup Secretary had the appearance of a female secretary with plugs hanging onto her back and carried around a glowing tablet in her hand. Seeing that she summoned them made me think that was her deck's strength, swarming.

 _Now she has the conditions to use Link Summon._ I gulped with a sweat dropped down my cheek.

Hibiki raised her hand in the air and the portal for Link Summoning. "I have created a circuit that leads to our future! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are that I need at least two Effect Monsters! I set Cybverse Wizard, Backup Secretary, and Stack Reviver into the Link Markers!"

The three monsters flew up into the arrows of the portal. The people cheered out their excitement of seeing the new summoning. My heart was racing and my eyes couldn't look away from this. It was like seeing a magic show of someone pulling out a large statue from a small hat.

"Circuit combination! I summon one of favorites, Link Three, Decode Talker!"

Flying down from the portal was that futuristic warrior that I saw during the first part of the tournament. Decode Talker. A name that sounded like a program, which was funny about the Cyberse-type Monsters she had. It looked cool like he was a mech that people would love to make for a robot fight.

Decode Talker: Dark

ATK: 2300 LINK – 3

"I activate Stack Reviver's ability! Since I use him as a material for a Link Summon, I can bring back another monster that are used for that same summon! Revive, Cyberse Wizard!"

A diamond-shaped portal came out over Hibiki's shoulder. Cyberse Wizard jumped out of it. A tap of his staff on the ground, his body was glowing light blue. It made me believe that he was in its defense position because Silent Magician did the same thing.

Leo was smiling with his eyes glittering. He was looking at Decode Talker. It made me wonder what he was thinking about the Link Summon since he saw it up close. Also, Megamorph was gone, meaning that Magnen lost five-hundred points boost.

Morphtronic Magnen: 2300 – 500 = 1800

"By the way," Hibiki spoke to get Leo's attention. "Decode Talker's special ability activates! Take a look at our monsters and where they are standing!"

Everyone became silent and we looked at the field. Balancer Lord and Cyberse Wizard were behind Decode Talker, forming a V formation. Decode Talker stood in front of the chained Magnen. People might be confused from this, and so was I.

Hibiki made a small chuckle. "Look at the arrows of the Link Summon. Decode Talker gains five-hundred attack points for every Monster that the arrows are pointing to."

 _Arrows…? Oh!_ I gasped when I came to the realization.

The portal of the Link Summon had arrows that the Monsters flew into. Three of them; up, bottom-left, and bottom-right arrows were glowing. The positions of where the three Monsters were standing…

 _They were in where the arrows are pointing!_

Decode Talker: ATK: 2300 + 1500 = 3800

Hibiki declared her action to attack Magnen. Decode Talker raised his sword with both hands and his glowing eyes narrowed. Magnen struggled to break free of the Nightmare Wheel's chains, but to no avail. With a running charge, Decode Talker swung his glowing sword.

"Not so fast!" Leo revealed his facedown card. "It's the trap card, No Entry! It forces all of our monsters to switch to their defense mode! Which means I'm ending your attack to save Magnen!"

Leo chose a good move. He only delayed the inevitable, but it did give him another chance to reorganized his strategy. Magnen lose another of his five-hundred power boost because of this action.

Morphtronic Magnen: ATK: 1800 – 500 = 1300

Balancer Lord went on his knees and hid behind his shield. Due to Nightmare Wheel's effect, the giant magnet couldn't move its position. As for Decode Talker, he wasn't stopping. The robot warrior swung his sword and cut down both Magnen and Nightmare Wheel. Gasps of surprise came from the audience and Leo flinched a little as he became shock to see that his monster was killed.

Leo's Life Points: 3500 – 2500 = 1000

Decode Talker: 3800 – 500 = 3300

"W-What just happen? W-Why didn't your monster switch to defense?" Leo asked, trying to comprehend of this turn of events.

"Because my monster doesn't have any defense points," she replied as fast as possible.

I recalled that Decode Talker's defense points said "LINK – 3", which was something that I never seen before. The realization hit me like I was being slap in the face. Since his defense points were like that, he couldn't switch his position. Leo seemed to get it as he showed a bewildering face like he was trying to think of a way to beat that Link Monster.

"That kid…" Alice spoke up. "Leo needs to summon his dragon in order to beat Hibiki's Decode Talker."

I understood what she meant by that as I replied, "He needs a defense first before he can summon his Power Tool Dragon. And it doesn't seem like Hibiki wants to sit and wait for it. Wait… Why are you concern about Leo?"

Her cheeks became tinted red as cherries. She played around her fingers and turned her gaze away from me. It raised my curiosity a bit as I leaned my ears closer for her to whisper.

"Don't you think it's awkward facing someone after a Tag-Duel?"

I blinked and no words came out of my opened mouth.

She continued, "I mean Hibiki knew what cards I'm using and I knew what cards she is using. The fact that we work together to only fight each other feels… weird, don't you think?"

That thought didn't cross my mind. I never think it was awkward for me and Leo to be okay with Dueling each other in the final. I guess I wasn't that lighthearted as her.

Hibiki ended her turn while having a smile that had no care in the world. I wasn't sure she was thinking that Leo wasn't a challenge or taunting him. Whatever it was, it made Leo to hesitate on drawing his card.

It only lasted for a few seconds and he drew his card. He activated the Swords of Revealing Light spell card, a card that prevented Hibiki's Battle Phase for three turns. Three golden glowing swords came down from the sky and became a wall between Leo and Hibiki.

Swords of Revealing Light: 3

"Nice," Hibiki nodded. "But is that enough to stop me?"

"Oh, there's more! Just you wait! I end my turn!"

She shook her head and drew her card. She summoned a monster called Draconnet. It was a small dragon that was glowing blue as the morning sky and lines that were darker to contrast. Its tail had a cute Wi-Fi symbol.

Draconnet: Level 3, Dark

ATK: 1400 DEF: 1200

"Draconnet's special ability kicks in! Since I summoned him, I can bring out Bitron from my deck to the field!"

Appearing next to the dragon was a small ball-like robot. It was white with a glowing blue halo underneath. It was designed like a flying droid with the black screen had glowing eyes and a camera attachment on its head.

Bitron: Level 2, Earth

ATK: 200 DEF: 2000

Then the portal for Link Summon appeared in the sky again. She shouted, "I have created a circuit that leads to our future! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are that I need two Cyberse monsters! I set Draconnet and Bitron into the Link Markers!"

The small dragon and cute drone flew into the portal. The arrows of left and right glowed red.

"Circuit combination! Come on out, Link Two, Honeybot!"

Flying out of the portal was a robot that was designed to be a lady with a butt of a bumblebee. She had four golden blades on her back that were used as her wings. That robot bee-girl hovered behind Decode Talker with a playful smile.

Honeybot: Light

ATK: 1900 LINK – 2

"One more time! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are two Cyberse monsters! I set Balancer Lord and Cyberse Wizard into the Link Markers!"

The silver knight and white wizard flew into the portal. The left and bottom-right arrows glowed and suddenly a pillar of fire came down from the portal and hit the ground. It was like seeing the end of the world from an alien invader.

"Circuit combination! Time to heat things up, Link Two, Flame Administrator!"

The fire died down and there stood was a crimson robot that had a bulky appearance compared to Decode Talker. I was thinking that if it would transform, it would be a block. Its forearms were large to be boxing gloves.

Flame Administrator: Fire

ATK: 1200 LINK – 2

"Also, Flame Administrator's special ability is active! As long as he remains, all of my Link Monsters gain an eight-hundred power boost in their attack points!"

Decode Talker: ATK: 3300 + 800 – 500 = 3600

Honeybot: ATK: 1900 + 800 = 2700

Flame Administrator: ATK: 1200 + 800 = 2000

"Kokoro," Alice nervously called my name. She had her fingers so close to her mouth that I thought she was biting her nails. "The odds aren't in his favor. Even with the help of the Swords of Revealing Light…"

"Don't count your chickens before they hatch," I interrupted her. "Just because Hibiki has summon strong monsters, doesn't mean it's over. Besides, Leo's winning chance depends on his three draws."

After Hibiki gave a gentleman's bow, she ended her turn. One of the glowing swords disappeared into thin air.

Swords of Revealing Light: 3 – 1 = 2

Leo drew his card and he activated Pot of Greed to draw two more. Then he summoned Morphtronic Celfon who appeared in front of him in his robotic form.

Morphtronic Celfon: Level 1, Earth

ATK: 100 DEF: 100

He then used Celfon's special ability. The numbers on his chest flashed randomly until it stopped at the number three. After looking at the top three cards from his deck, Leo special summoned Morphtronic Boarden. A large skateboard appeared behind Celfon and it transformed into a robot with blue arms and legs.

Morphtronic Boarden: Level 3, Earth

ATK: 500 DEF: 1800

"Now with Boarden out, I can attack you directly! Go, Celfon and Boarden!"

Under Leo's command, the two robots charge through. Boarden transformed into its skateboard form and had Celfon ride on top. They passed through the glowing swords and hit Hibiki at her stomach before skating back to Leo's side.

Hibiki's Life Points: 3000 – 600 = 2400

Hibiki rubbed her belly like she actually felt that pain, though I bet she did that subconsciously thinking that it was real. She smiled and complimented, "Not bad, Leo. Even with these strong monsters, you can just attack me with special effects."

"There's still more." He smirked as he ended his turn after setting down a facedown card behind his robots.

She drew her card. "Hmm… I'll end my turn after placing this card facedown," she said and a card appeared behind her Link Monsters. Another glowing sword disappeared.

Swords of Revealing Light: 2 – 1 = 1

Leo's turn and he drew his card. He summoned Morphtronic Datatron and it appeared as a giant orange lighter that transformed into a robot. Fire spews out of its face to show how intimidating it was.

Morphtronic Datatron: Level 3, Fire

ATK: 1200 DEF: 600

Then he activated Celfon's special ability and the numbers on its chest flashed randomly. The light landed on the number two. He looked at the top two cards of his deck and shuffled them back into his deck. He didn't summon another Morphtronic monster.

"But that doesn't mean that I won't attack you! Go, everyone! Attack Hibiki directly!"

Boarden transformed into its skateboard form and having the other two robots riding on top of it. They swerved through the Link Monsters and each of them hit Hibiki one by one. Celfon punched her in the face, Datatron spewed fire near her arm (though not really burning her), and Boarden charged at the stomach again. Leo ended his turn after that.

Hibiki's Life Points: 2400 – 1800 = 600

The crowd raised a roaring cheer that I was trying to ignore. I couldn't blame them. This Duel was neck-to-neck.

I noticed Hibiki still had that smile on her face. She was having the time of her life. It made me wonder if she had some plans with her life points being that low.

A chuckling sound was heard through the speakers, causing the noisy audience to slowly quiet down. Hibiki was making that laugh. It was like she was going mad or something.

She stopped her laughing and took a notice her surroundings. "I'm sorry about that," she apologized. "I'm just happy that someone put me on the spot like that. I mean seriously. The Duelists I face didn't cause enough damage on me like you did, Leo. But let me say this… Two turns are all I need to win."

Everyone gasped. They were surprise by her declaration and I couldn't blame them. Seeing this situation, would she be able to do it? It piqued my interest that I cracked a smile.

Leo had a different reaction to her declaration. He pointed his finger at her and said, "Oh yeah! Show me what you got!"

"Heh, I will!" She drew her card. "This is turn one. I end it by setting down another facedown card." A card appeared next to the other facedown card and the last glowing sword disappeared.

Swords of Revealing Light: 1 – 1 = 0

"I'm going to end this quick!"

Leo drew his card. He used Celfon's ability again and the numbers flashed until it stopped on five. After looking at the top five cards of his deck, he summoned Morphtronic Remoten. Its appearance was more of an old music player than a TV remote. The robotic form had an extension plug stretching out like an arm and the bottom corners of its rectangular shape being its legs. It was shorter than the other robots on the field.

Morphtronic Remoten: Level 3, Earth

ATK: 300 DEF: 1200

Then he let all of his robots to do their direct attack against Hibiki's life points. They swerved through the Link Monsters. Everyone was holding their breath, believing that this was the end of the Duel.

Hibiki didn't let that happen as she revealed one of her facedown cards. "I activate the spell, Security Block! I'll place it on Honeybot! When that happens, none of us take damage and my monster can't be destroy in battle!"

A mask-like shield appeared in front of Honeybot, covering her entire body. The Morphtronic robots were getting close to Hibiki, but the shielded Link Monster flew down and protected her. As soon as Boarden hit the shield and couldn't leave a dent on it, forced Leo to end his Battle Phase.

The gasps came from the audience who were holding their breaths.

Leo was baffled by this turn of events that he took a step back. He understood that he was in trouble. He quickly performed a Synchro-Summon as he tuned Celfon and Boarden with Remoten. The monsters were turned into three green rings and four balls of light and a beam was fired into the air.

"Here comes my ace, Power Tool Dragon!"

Flying down from the sky was Power Tool Dragon. The yellow robotic slammed its shovel arm to the ground as it landed on the ground. The ground shook upon its landing.

Power Tool Dragon: Level 7, Earth

ATK: 2300 DEF: 2500

"I equipped my dragon with Double Tool C&D that gave him a thousand-point power boost!"

Power Tool Dragon's shovel and jackhammer were replaced with a chainsaw and drill. The dragon's eyes flashed for a moment and did a mighty roar, though mechanical like hearing gears grinding against each other.

Power Tool Dragon: ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300

Leo ended his turn after he switched Datatron in its defense position, which the robot transformed into a giant lighter. It was then he activated Datatron's ability that inflicts three-hundred-point damage direct to her. The lighter's lid opened and a ball of fire flew out of it and hit her.

Hibiki's Life Points: 600 – 300 = 300

"Turn two," Hibiki spoke with a smirk as she drew her card. "This is the end. Alert Lancer, reveal yourself!"

The last facedown card that she had flip over to reveal that it was a spell card. A fiery orange aura flow into Decode Talker. That glow was stored from his body and into the blade of his sword.

"Decode Talker. Attack Datatron." She snapped her fingers and her chosen warrior followed her order with a running charge.

Everyone gasped again. Attacking a defending monster wouldn't deal damage to an opponent's life points and it would make sense to fight the strongest monster on the field. But that thought must have been due to the lack of knowledge about Alert Lancer.

Hibiki explained, "This spell allows my Decode Talker to gain the piercing ability. Even with Datatron going defense, it didn't mean anything with the difference of points will be dealt to you."

Decode Talker swung his sword horizontally, slicing the giant lighter in half. An explosion happened and Leo was caught in the smoke.

Leo's Life Points: 1000 – 3000 = 0

"T-This… Duel is over!" Narumi shouted through the speakers and the monsters on the field were gone. "The winner of the second semi-final is Hibiki! She will be facing Alice in the final!"

A roaring cheer came from the crowd. They were happy to see an incredible tug-of-war between the two of them, along with the cool Link Summons.

Leo, on the other hand, wasn't happy. He had his head down with eyes closed before slamming a fist "gently" at the ground. Feeling frustrated that he lost the Duel.

Hibiki walked up to Leo. She reached out her hand to him and say something to him.

It seemed like the workers must have cut off their microphones because their voices didn't come out of the speakers and the audience was cheering loud. Despite I couldn't hear them, their gestures were enough to get me an idea what they were saying.

Leo wiped his eyes with his arm. He pointed his finger at her and had an energetic smile telling her that he would challenge her again. Hibiki with a smirk of confidence pointed at the sky as she picked him up from the ground. The two of them waved at the crowd.

Then I turned to Alice fidgeting a little with a single tear building up on her left eye. She muttered, "What should I do…? Should I beat her and win…? Do I have to face her…? What should dinner be?"

 _How is that last question relates to you facing Hibiki!?_

I wanted to slap her like a comedian in a stand-up, but I held that urge like putting chains on me. Seeing Alice acting like that made me wanted to act like a big sister to her. I decided to give her some ease by talking to her, though the topic wouldn't be about what she was worrying about. It was something that had been bugging me since we first talk.

"So, how you know me?" I asked and she looked at me with a head tilt to a side. "We never met before, so that has been bugging me."

She unzipped the dark fanny pack that was strap around her waist and took out a violet smartphone. After turning it on, she showed me a photo that appeared on screen. It was a picture of me eating breakfast made by Zora. Baffled by this, I ask her where she got this photo while there were heat gathering on my cheeks.

"Auntie Kizuna gave it to me," Alice answered bluntly.

Hearing my mom's name coming out from her mouth, I clenched my hand into a fist. I didn't show my anger on my face and held my trembling arm.

The little girl continued, "The other day she visited my dad at my house, talking about some complicated stuff. Then when she told me about you and show me what you look like, I have this urge to meet you! By the way, Kizuna allows me to call her Auntie."

My head was pounding. I rubbed my temples while the thought of wanting to punch my mom screamed. I also didn't notice that Alice was hugging me with great affection (like squeezing me tight), but I allow it since I was trying to ease her nerves.

By the way, Narumi told everyone of a five-minute break for bathroom and drinks. With that being said, Hibiki and Leo walked up to us with smiles.

I took a quick deep breath and said, "It seems like we both lost, Leo."

"Yeah," Leo nodded. "But that doesn't stop me for trying again next time! I will improve and I will beat you, Hibiki!"

"I'll be waiting then," Hibiki chuckled and then turned to me. "So, what are you going to do now?"

I scratched my cheek. "I don't know… I guess I should go home."

Alice let go of me and looked at me with her eyes widened in shock. "You're not staying!?" Alice gasped and she looked like she was about to cry.

It made me feel guilty for cutting down her spirit, but I told her my reason. "I came here for a challenge to see who was strong enough to beat me. Since I lost, I need to improve myself as well. Please understand, Alice. In fact, you can come visit me anytime you want."

Alice smiled when I say that. I gave her my address and she told me that she would come over tomorrow morning, which made me wonder if she went to school.

With three minutes left, Hibiki quickly told us that she was going to the restrooms. Alice followed behind her. Leo wanted to find Luna, so that the two of them could watch the final Duel together. I decided to help him on that mission.

We search for Luna as we walked pass the rowdy crowd. It was hard to find a little girl with cyan-haired girl among the hundreds of people. It took us about two minutes to get out of there and we found Leo's sister underneath a tree, lying on the knees of a burgundy-haired girl.

"Luna!" Leo shouted and ran up to her.

As for me, I took a closer look of the burgundy-haired girl. My eyes widened in surprise to see it was Akiza.


	21. Akiza

Disclaimer: Sorry it took so long. Also, no Christmas special.

Chapter 19: Akiza

"Akiza, what are you doing here?" I asked.

The burgundy-haired girl, who was wearing her school uniform for some reason, didn't say anything. She had her eyes turned to Leo who was worrying over his sister's lying body.

"Leo, I'm okay," Luna spoke in a weak tone. "I was woozy, that's all."

"That's why you stay home!" Leo pointed that out. "I told it happen again! We're going home now!"

"But… what about the tournament?"

"I lost! Didn't you see it?"

Luna gasped and pouted like a sad puppy. "I didn't see it… I'm sorry, Leo."

The atmosphere around us became depressing than someone breaking a window with a rock. Seeing the two siblings interacting with each other like that made me feel like a worrying big sister trying to figure out how to make them happy. I was being reminded of a similar situation back in Satellite with Ash and Midori.

"Leo," I gently spoke. "Luna came to cheer you on. I may not know her condition, but I do understand her feelings to show you her support. The fact that she is here shows how much she cares for you. Don't you agree?"

Leo's expression changed as he came to understand where I was going with my words. He nodded his head and apologized to his sister for all that shouting that he made.

"Ladies and gentleman!" Narumi's voice shouted through the speakers. "The break is now over and our final contestants are itching to face each other!"

The crowd got excited with a roaring cheer.

Narumi continued, "These two were partners of the Tag-Duel since the tournament started! Now fate has force them to fight each other after going through many opponents. Today we want a champion who will be going to the upcoming King's Cup! Hibiki, Alice, are you two ready?"

Hibiki was the first to respond. "Of course! It's showtime!"

"I am also ready!" Alice spoke in a tone that she was pump for a fight.

"Yeah!" Narumi shouted. "It's time to Duel! Game on!"

The audience cheered yet again. This level of excitement had shown me how popular Duel Monsters had become.

Ignoring the final match, I turned to Leo. Before I could say anything, the worker in the Lady Heat costume came up to us. She was running in a bad posture that would result in her overexerting her body that she would need to breathed in large intakes of oxygen. Also, I looked at her feet and wanted to make sure that she didn't trip on anything.

"Hey! Wait!" The worker shouted.

As soon as she got here, she was breathing very heavily as I expected. As she inhaled and exhaled air in a gasping manner, she handed me and Leo three booster packs of the latest edition, Breaking Force. I asked why she was giving this to us.

The worker explained, "They are consolation prizes for participating in the tournament. At least you two won't be going home empty-handed."

"Uh, thanks," I uttered and then she left. I turned to the kids and said, "Anyway, Luna get better. And Leo, try to understand her feelings."

The twins nodded their heads.

I placed my hand over Luna's forehead and then the other hand on mine's. Her temperature seemed to be normal, though it made me wonder what caused her wooziness. I told Leo that his sister should be fine to walk back home.

"That's good," Leo breathed out a sigh of relief.

He helped her up, held her hand and shoulder, and they walked away to the exit of the park. Luna apologized to her brother again, but Leo didn't mind it as he gave her a reassuring smile. It was nice to see siblings helping and caring for each other.

When they were gone from sight, I turned to Akiza. "Okay, answer my question," I demanded in a… gentle tone.

Akiza reacted with a twitch of her head moving up like someone snapping a stick near her. She didn't look at me and said, "I was happening to be walking by and I heard your name from here."

I sat next to her and have my face drew closer with a bright smile. "Oh, since when? How long were you watching?"

"Since your Tag-Duel," she answered. "… How are you feeling?"

"What do you mean?"

"… Your lost…"

"Oh, that! Heh, I don't mind. I enter this tournament to have fun since I got nothing to do."

Then the silence returned. I wasn't sure what else to say next. The crowd became too noisy when Hibiki was doing her Link Summon. Akiza then tugged my shoulders while keeping her head not being in my sight. It made me wonder what was making her to act like that.

"I need…" She muttered and the other words went silent like her lips were only moving.

I had my hand over my ear and uttered, "I'm sorry, what do you say?"

"I need…"

"I can't hear you if you went silent like that. Forgive my tone, but you need to speak up."

Akiza bit her lower lip. She turned her to me and shouted, "Kokoro, I need your help!"

Her voice entered my ears. It was piercing that I picked my ear a little to get rid the small ringing sound.

"You don't need to yell! Wait, you need my help? With what?"

She didn't say another word as her eyes were drawn to the noisy crowd that were watching the final Duel. The teenage girl had a displeasing face. I could tell what she was thinking from that.

I took her hand and stood up. "Let's go some place that is quiet," I said with a smile.

Akiza looked at me like she was an abandoned puppy that was happy being picked up. We then left the park and headed to the parking lot to get my Duel Runner. As I was pulling out the two helmets from the built-in trunk of my motorcycle, I noticed the teenage girl was looking at the vehicle.

"What is it? Like my ride?"

"Is it safe…?"

"Huh?"

Looking at my Duel Runner again and I couldn't see what she sees. Despite that it was made from junk, it was pretty maintained. There were no scratches and holes on the sapphire-blue frame, the wheels didn't have any rust, the seat was big enough for two people to be on, the tire suspensions were still in place, and the tires weren't worn out. I didn't see the problem. That was when the logical reason popped out of my head.

"Is this your first time riding a Duel Runner?"

She didn't say anything. It seemed like I hit bull's eye there that her cheeks were tinted red and she averted her gaze again.

I lightly hit my chest with a helmet that I was holding. I put on a proud smile despite the little pain I received from that hit. "Don't worry, Akiza. You'll be safe with me driving. Just hold on _really_ tight."

Akiza was skeptical with a puzzling expression. She took one of the helmets, brushed her bangs upward, and put on the safety equipment on her head. It looked weird seeing her wearing the helmet and school uniform together and I couldn't figure out why.

"Kokoro, where are we going?" the teenage girl asked.

I put on my helmet and answered, "Some place where we can freely speak without much noise. Which do you prefer? My place or your place?"

"… My place… is a dorm…"

"Oh, okay. My place then."

We got on the Duel Runner with Akiza sitting behind me. She seemed hesitant to held onto my body at first, but she later complied by wrapping her arms around my stomach when I was revving the engines. I drove out of the parking lot and speed up to, or less than, the speed limit of thirty-five.

"Slow down!" Akiza screamed.

It confused me. I was following the law and it didn't seem like I have gone over the limit, according to my display. Then she screamed again and held me tighter when I swerved pass a few cars on the way. I slowed down as soon as I noticed the recklessness of my driving.

* * *

We arrived at the apartment building and parked my Duel Runner in the garage. Akiza was hugging me too tightly despite my safe-driving. It was uncomfortable from having her hands squeezing my chest and stomach during the ride.

"You can let go of me now," I uttered.

The teenager blinked her eyes and saw where her hands were. She released me and apologized in a meekly tone. I found it cute to see her acting like that with her cheeks tinted red. It reminded me of Midori who hide behind me when she first met Ash and the other kids.

"It's okay," I reassured her with a friendly smile. "After all, my roommate touched my body a lot. Though, in her defense, she wanted to know my size so that she can buy me some new clothes."

"… Is that something that I need to know?"

"Huh? It wasn't? I assumed… You know what, never mind. Let's head inside."

I thought she think that I would be mad at her for her hands' placement, but I was wrong. Awkwardness settled in-between us as we walk inside the building.

Zora wasn't in the lobby, so I didn't say that I came back home. Then I think about where I should have my conversation with Akiza. Misty was at work and Toby was at his friend's place to study for the upcoming exams. Meaning that apartment room should be empty. I took her to there.

Her reaction when she saw the room was… indifferent. "Nice place," was the words coming out of her mouth.

"Well, my roommate is a model, so most of the things here are her stuff." I scratched the back of my head when I said that.

I directed Akiza to sit on the couch in front of the TV and I went to the kitchen to get some drinks. I poured icy cold water into two plastic cups and I brought and placed them on the coffee table.

"So, what is it that you want to talk to me about?" I asked as I sat next to her.

Akiza, nervous at first, explained to me. It was the topic of bullies. Ever since the incident with those boys earlier, there were others trying to get under her skin and the results ended with minor injuries. However, things escalated to the point of nearly destroying school property. She heard the concerns from the teachers about kicking her out of the academy, but they feared the consequences from that. She didn't tell me why they didn't expel her earlier and I didn't pry any further.

"Weird," I uttered without a second thought. "Why come to me of all people? I mean we just met on that one day and we have little interaction with each other."

"Your… offer…"

That hit me in the head when I realized it. I did offer her to come and talk to me, but the topic about bullying wasn't something I should know about.

"I can't be much of a help though," I said in a meek tone. "If you want my opinion, just ignore them. I mean those kinds of people only want the satisfaction of your reaction or the feeling of being the alpha dog picking on the weak."

"I tried that and…"

"Didn't work, huh."

I pondered on the idea of how to help Akiza. Looking at her face, I could imagine her as the type to lose patience easily. What bothered me was the fact that everyone knew that she was a Psychic Duelist, but they were willing to poke the bear and would take the risk of being injured in the process. I crossed my arms over my chest, closed my eyes, and tilted my head from right to left. Then I opened my eyes as I got a lightbulb popping out of my head.

"Hey, Akiza, I got an idea! Why not use your power for good?"

"For… good…?"

Akiza looked at me for a second before she gasped and shook her head. Her body trembled as she shifted her gaze to her arm. She gritted her teeth and clenched her hand into a fist.

"That's impossible," she said in a gloomy tone. "My powers aren't meant for good… They're a curse, not for making me some kind of hero. I'm a monster… nothing more and—ow!"

I slapped the teenage girl at the back of her head before she finished that sentence. Hearing her whining was ticking me off.

"Do you really believe that?" I sneered. "Do you really believe those words coming out of your mouth, young lady!? It sickens me that you actually think that way!"

Both my slap and loud voice snapped Akiza's attention. She looked at me with the eyes of a ferocious animal, but it was quelled down when I showed her my burning rage in my eyes, forcing her to become docile to some degree.

I breathed out a heavy sigh. "Listen, I'm not going to act as a preacher, but as an adult with experience under her belt. You saw me how I use my powers against yours when we met and I bet you can do the same thing too… with the right training."

"You don't know that…"

"You're right! I don't know! But that doesn't mean to call yourself a monster. You can change society's perspective about Psychic Duelists, that not all of them are evil. In fact, my roommate's little brother is like you; he has powers, but weak compare to your level. He asks me to teach him how to control it and hope he can use it for good."

Akiza was silent. She was perplexed by my words that she had her pupils dilated to the side.

"If someone like Toby has the will to change, then you will too. It's all about patience and earning society's trust. How you think that bug superhero continued being a hero despite the news calling him a menace?"

Silent Magician tried to correct me about that bugs and arachnids were different, but I ignored her voice and continued speaking.

"Anyway, it ticks me off that you chose to give up instead of working hard. The children that I took care of have shown me their will to live on despite their living conditions. Where's yours?" I poked the tip of Akiza's nose.

No words came out of her lips. She averted her eyes to her left arm. It left me no choice as I forced her head to look at me.

I put on a gentle smile and said, "I don't know what your circumstances are, but I know with hard work and dedication that you can be seen as a hero, not a monster. That's how I am today." I grabbed hold of Akiza's hands and I could feel her warmth through my palms. "There are people out there who have the worst conditions than you and they have given into despair. Don't think that the world owes you for your misfortune while others wish for the same thing."

"But… But…"

"No buts!" I placed a finger over her lips. "So, I will help you with your powers and teach you how to control them. With my help, you can change a lot of people's perspectives about Psychic Duelists. Show them that they're not monsters, they are human like you and me."

Akiza lowered her head as I released her lips. "Can… you do it?" she meekly asked.

"Of course, I will."

I nodded my head to give her some reassurance. I brushed away her bangs and saw the small smile on her face. Her eyes were watery that I took out my red handkerchief to wipe her face. Akiza wanted me to stop and that she wasn't a child, but she didn't put up any resistance. It made me wonder if her parents showered her with this level of love before. I looked deeply at her eyes to see what was in her soul, but I ended up seeing only entrance being lit and the path forward was still covered in darkness.

"Bothersome, don't you think?" I uttered that question with a chuckle.

Then a sound of someone clapping behind us. I turned to see Misty and Toby standing there with expressions that were telling me that they were amused. It seemed like Toby was the one clapping, though it was unintended because of his older sister shaking her head at him.

"Just… how long you two were standing there?"

"About the time when you said 'It sickens me that you actually believe that' part," Misty answered. "Though I was expecting something… different."

I narrowed my eyes at her as I was reading her smiling expression. "You're lucky that there are children here or I will torment you like what I did back home against those annoying people."

Misty placed a finger under her smiling lips and made a giggling sound. "Say what you want, Kokoro, but I know that you're not the type to hurt your friends. Also, we're home."

"I can see that!" I pointed a finger at her.

Akiza was confused as she asked me who these two were. I introduced them to her and vice-versa to my roommates. Then I told my roommates what about the recent event and their reactions were what I expected. Toby was excited that he was having someone from his school to be training alongside with and Misty, well, she was worried.

"Do you think that society can change that easily?" Misty asked. "Do you considered how long it will take for that to happen? I asked you to help Toby so that he won't hurt anyone and keep his powers hidden. Akiza is a different story, she's well-known for her powers."

I understood her concern about helping Akiza, but I couldn't just turn a blind-eye and ignore her. It was like the time of how much I waited for Kalin for me to apologize and that ended with him being arrested. The sense of regret that I wasn't assertive that time had weigh my heart for this long. It sounded like I was using Akiza in order for me to let go of that guilt. I clenched my hand into a fist that I could feel my nails digging into the skin of my palm.

"I…" A word spoken out of Akiza's mouth. "I was… the one who asked Kokoro for help. Her solution was… futile for me."

"Akiza…" I uttered her name.

"But even so… I won't know until I try. If that's the way to get those people off my back, then I will do it no matter how long it takes."

There was fire in her eyes and no hesitation in her words. It made me feel happy to hear her to say that she would take my training idea.

I patted her on the back and said, "My training method is going to be long and unorthodox, Akiza. Are you sure this is what you want?"

She nodded her head. "After you gave me that lecture, how couldn't I? You said that you can remove this monster's curse, right?"

"I said that I will turn you into a hero under society's perception. If getting rid of someone's powers were that easy, I would've done that to you and myself a long time ago."

"It's still the same thing," said Toby who wanted to jump in.

I continued, "Well, if you show me that level of determination, I will be happy to help. But know this, Akiza… Keep your head up, no matter what. That's what Kizuna, my mother, always told me."

The slip of my mother's name seemed to piqued Akiza's curiosity. I avoided from talking about my mother by telling her the basics that I gave Toby to her.

She didn't understand how I described the feeling of concentrating her power to her fingers as I told her to imagined having her blood flowing into her fingertips. It wasn't a good analogy that even Toby commented that it took him a long time to get that feeling.

So, I had been teaching Akiza, along with Toby, of how to concentrate her power by focusing onto one of their cards. I had them to activate their Duel Disks for their training. While this was going on, Misty went out to get some dinner for everyone.

Toby was holding the Sparks spell card. He slammed it on his Duel Disk and small transparent sparks of fire came out like a firework. It was good enough that made me believe that he wasn't slacking. Akiza was using the Giant Trunade spell card and that made me notice her power level. It was uncontrollable. Strong wind blew all over the room, causing a lot of books and paper flying. I quickly turned off her Duel Disk to stop the effect before it got worse. The room was a total mess.

"I-I'm sorry," Akiza meekly apologized.

"T-That's okay, Akiza." I chuckled. _I need to clean this up before Misty gets back._

I took out the Silent Magician card and summoned her. Seeing her to appear next to me was shocking for the teenage girl. The white magician, without asking, used her magic to clean up the room. Books and papers that were lying on the ground had been flying up in the air and put back where they were. The cleaning was done in less than a minute and Silent Magician disappeared.

Then Misty returned, which was strangely quick in my opinion, and she didn't notice anything amiss. She told me that the delivery guy from the restaurant and delivery joint, Cherry Blossom came in on time and she show us two plastic trays that she was carrying in her hands.

As she placed the trays on the table, I asked, "What's for dinner?"

"We're having fried noodles and boiled vegetables. Also, Akiza, want to join us for dinner before going back?"

No words came out of Akiza's mouth, but her growling stomach did the talking. She covered her stomach with her cheeks being red again.

All of us ate dinner together and even chatted until Akiza's time to go back to her dorm. I offered her to give her a ride, but she chose to take a bus. It made me sad to hear that as we said our goodbyes.


End file.
